August 26, 2021

Countries implement restrictive measures to encourage vaccination

topic:	Health and Sanitation
located:	Germany, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece
editor:	Katarina Panić

In Germany, anyone wanting to enter a public space must meet one requirement of the 3G rule: geimpft, genesen, getestet - which means vaccinated, recovered, tested. The list is not final, and private business owners or event organisers are also free to impose the rule if they choose. Taking Germany’s lead, some countries are considering imposing the same requirements. 

Serbia, fearing a fourth wave of COVID-19 among rising infections, is about to decide how to differentiate between vaccinated and unvaccinated people in terms of treatment. 

"Colder weather is coming, more and more events will take place indoors, and therefore the risk of spreading the infection is increasing," the mayor of capital Belgrade, Zoran Radojičić, told the media. "We have no other way to deal with the pandemic than to draw the attention of people who have not been vaccinated - that they must be vaccinated,” he added.

There is an ongoing debate in Bosnia, too, whether this is the best approach to motivate citizens to get vaccinated and improve the communal immunity against COVID-19. 

"Let's talk about the measures rather than restrictions. Restriction is too harsh a word for measures that could be introduced for unvaccinated citizens," Sarajevo-based infectious disease specialist Ednan Drljević told local media.  

A member of the crisis staff in Bosnia, Nenad Stevandić, said the introduction of restrictions for unvaccinated persons could be problematic, as there is no law that obliges people to be vaccinated.

"On the other hand, if restrictions are not introduced, the government will be blamed for the new wave of pandemics," Stevandić said.

Greece just announced it would end free testing for unvaccinated people to boost inoculation rates. As of next month, unvaccinated people will be forced to pay for testing - and some are obliged to be tested once or twice per week, depending on their jobs.

"These measures are not punitive. They are our duty to all those who went through 18 months of the pandemic carefully, those who lost their shops, jobs, or had to work from home to protect themselves," the Greece Minister of Health, Vassilis Kikilias, told the media.

Call it one way or another, unvaccinated people everywhere face a whole range of prohibitions as COVID-19 cases continue to rise.

Image by Daniel Schludi

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