Closing of nightclubs, lowering the curtain at 1 hour for bars, gauge at 50% or 70% in restaurants and theaters and even curfews between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. To face the new wave of Covid -19, which posts new records of positive cases every day, several regions of Spain have decided to tighten the restrictions even if some, like that of Madrid, are still resisting.
While less than 20% of the country’s intensive care beds are now occupied by Covid-19 patients, the government is convinced that the best strategy remains “The intensification and acceleration of the vaccination process” in a country which already has one of the best vaccine coverage in Europe. By mid-October, 90% of the eligible adult population had received at least one dose of vaccine, without the government needing to impose a health pass. As of Tuesday, December 28, 90% of those over 12 had a complete vaccination schedule.
Faced with the Omicron variant, the head of the Spanish government, Pedro Sanchez, recalled after a meeting with the presidents of the different autonomous regions of the country, Wednesday, December 22, the objectives set by age group for the administration of the booster dose, for the time reserved for over 40s.
While more than 86% of those over 70 have already received it, the government intends to have vaccinated 80% of 60-69 year-olds before the end of the year, 80% of 50-year-olds the last week of January and 80% of 40 years old the first week of March. Meanwhile, Spain also expects to have administered a first dose of vaccine to 70% of 3.3 million children aged 5 to 12 as of February 7.
The vaccination of the youngest began on the hats of wheels on December 15. While in Catalonia all children are called to be vaccinated in dedicated infrastructures, in Madrid and in most other regions, it is first of all the 10-11 year olds who have been invited to go to hospitals or health centers. Some other regions, such as Valencia or Extremadura, have organized vaccination in schools, and the slight controversy caused by the lack of confidentiality This strategy was quickly stifled by the success of the campaign, widely followed by parents.
“Very important vaccine culture”
With 92% of those over 12 having received at least one dose, and even 87% among those aged 12-19, a boost has been given to vaccination since, at the end of November, parts of Spain started to implement the vaccine. Passes Covid in nightclubs, hospitals, even restaurants, to try to encourage the last reluctant or lazy. Nearly 400,000 new vaccinated people were thus identified during the first three weeks of December. And this although in Madrid, Castile-La Mancha or Castile-and-Leon, no pass is required for the time being.
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