Latvia abandons idea of mandatory vaccination of seniors

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Latvia has abandoned the idea of compulsory vaccination against Covid-19 for people above 60, LSM's Latvian language service reported on February 3.

At the beginning of January, Minister of Health Daniels Pavļuts had stated that the coalition was considering setting up vaccination against Covid-19 as an obligation for poeple over 60 years. The proposal was submitted to the Operational Management Group (OVG) at the beginning of January. This week, Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš said there had not been any initiative from OVG on the matter. "I have no information at this time that it is being discussed further in the expert group," Kariņš said. There are no plans to view it in government meetings.

State Chancery told LSM that the issue of compulsory vaccination for people aged 60 had been discussed with experts in rights and representatives of the vaccination project.

"By analyzing the dynamics of the vaccination coverage among seniors and possible ways of increasing it, it was concluded that more effectiveness is achieved by strengthening the choice of voluntary vaccination rather than by requiring vaccination. Accordingly, the approach is continued and developed, with different means of addressing and clarifying, to help understand the need for vaccination and to make a decision to vaccinate against Covid-19," the Cabinet press secretary Reinis Grāvītis told LSM.

According to data from the National Health Service (NVD), 81% of the population over 60 have vaccinated against Covid-19 in Latvia in early February. Among the 60-69-year-olds, the vaccination comprises 85%, among 70-79-year-olds it is 80%, whereas among 80-89-year-olds it is70%. Meanwhile, for seniors over 90 years, the vaccination coverage is at 49%.

195,138 senior inhabitants, or 59%, have got the booster.

 

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