LISBON, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The Portuguese Directorate-General for Health (DGS) announced on Thursday a change in its vaccination plan against COVID-19, starting to immunize people aged 16 and above with comorbidities.

The health authorities justified in a statement that the change was possible due to improved availability of vaccines in the second phase of the plan.

According to the DGS, diabetes, severe obesity, active cancer, transplantation and immunosuppression, severe neurological diseases, and mental illnesses are among the diseases given priority for vaccination.

The second vaccination phase also includes those who had recovered from COVID-19 infection at least six months ago, but they would receive only one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

"The Vaccination Plan is dynamic, evolving and adaptable to the evolution of scientific knowledge and the timing of the arrival in Portugal of the different vaccines against COVID-19," the DGS explained.

Over 2.6 million people have so far been vaccinated. According to the authorities, the ultimate goal is "to save lives by reducing mortality and hospitalizations" and "to preserve the resilience of the health system and the response system to the pandemic and the State."

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in an increasing number of countries with already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 275 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 91 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain and the United States, according to information released by the World Health Organization on April 20. Enditem

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