65 percent of residents in Mukono have failed to receive covid-19 booster doses due to uncontrolled extortions at health facilities.
Residents claim are asked to pay money by health officials in order to be vaccinated.
Moses Musasizi, a boda boda rider says reached out to the district vaccination and general hospital centers but was asked to pay money which he declined to pay and hence missed out on the second doze.
“I tried to mobilize my colleagues to get vaccinated but health officials wanted money ranging from Shillings 5000 to 10,000 before giving us the vaccines, so we failed to get it and yet we entitled to health care, “he says.
Another resident, Godfrey Mukasa says at the district and UCC vaccination centers medical officials asked for money and yet it is a government program.
“I wonder why I would be denied the vaccine and yet it is free. Denying me the vaccines puts my life at risk in case there is another outbreak,” he says.
Mukono District Health Officer- DHO Dr. Stephen Mulindwa denies for health officials says people just lack proper information on how the exercise is conducted.
“Sometimes the flow of information can also affect service utilization, so they need to be updated about boaster doses and also to justify their importance,” Dr. Mulindwa says.
He also notes that when the Ministry of Health mobilized masses especially those who were at the high risk of getting the virus, few people embraced the programme.
In Mukono, out of 270816 people who received the first dose, 27082 people went back for the boaster doses and 243734 did not go back for booster doses.
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