Lisbon (Portugal), Feb 3 (AP) Portugal has launched the second stage of its national vaccination plan as it struggles to get on top of a pandemic surge that has made it the world's worst-hit country by size of population.

Health services began Wednesday inoculating some 900,000 people over 80 years of age, or over 50 with underlying health problems, during the next two months.

Prime Minister António Costa said in the first phase during January more than 400,000 people were vaccinated, mainly residents and staff of nursing homes, frontline health workers and security forces.

"We are now making a big leap forward," Costa said of the second phase.

He said the challenge of the third phase of the plan, when the rest of the population is due to be inoculated, depends on how quickly manufacturers can provide vaccines. (AP)

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