Israel’s third dose vaccination scheme against Covid-19 for ages 50 and up commenced Friday in the country’s HMOs.

Last night, dozens of thousands of appointments were made as the first third-booster shots were administered to this age group.

The Maccabi Healthcare Services announced that since the morning hours, 14,000 appointments were made and more than 2,000 people were expected to receive the jab.

Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz, 56, was the first person of this age group to be administered the shot, as he arrived at the Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba. “I hope that as many of the over 50s will get vaccinated with the third dose, it is the most efficient tool we have to stop the Delta variant,” he stated.