5% of countries EXCLUDE people with Down syndrome from the COVID-19 vaccine

Down Syndrome International is a disabled people's organisation committed to improving the quality of life for people with Down syndrome, promoting their right to be included on a full and equal basis with others.

As part of our COVID-19 response, DSi reached out to organisation members to gather information about access to COVID-19 vaccinations in their country and the barriers encountered and to understand how we can best support them with associated advocacy activities. ∙

The data from this survey was collected from March 11th – April 27th 2021. 

 ∙37 member organisations completed the survey from 35 countries around the world ∙These countries encompassed all world regions (as defined by WHO: Africa, Americas, S-E Asia, Europe, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Pacific) 

 ∙These countries represented and low-, middle- and high-income brackets (as defined by the World Bank) 

 We found that: 

 ∙Only in 27% of countries were people with Down syndrome, one of the priority groups for vaccination.

 ∙In 22% of countries, people with Down syndrome are included within another disability group 

∙In 46% of countries, people with Down syndrome are being prioritised in the same way as the rest of the population 

 ∙In 5% of countries, people with Down syndrome are being excluded from the vaccination programme.

In response DSi is: 

 ∙liaising with international experts and researchers to provide the latest up-to-date, accurate and evidenced information about COVID-19 vaccines and information to support international, national and regional advocacy efforts. 

∙Working with and supporting its member organisations and international partners to advocate for the necessary prioritisation of people with Down syndrome in the COVID-19 vaccination rollout in countries worldwide.

In addition, DSi will publish a COVID-19 advocacy toolkit on the website. ds-int.org