The speech was anticipated. On Monday, July 12, more than 22 million French people watched the President of the Republic’s speech. Emmanuel Marcon has set a new timetable for the implementation of strong measures to combat the epidemic, including mandatory vaccination for caregivers, the extension of the health pass, and the delisting of the PCR test.
Faced with the Delta variant, which makes the fourth wave of Covid-19 inevitable, the Head of State has chosen to tighten health restrictions. In other countries, some of these decisions have already been made. Explore the most recent announcements in detail.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Four Officially Nominated Candidates For The Environmentalist Primary
July 21: health pass extended to culture
From this date forward, the sanitary pass will be extended to places of leisure and culture that can accommodate more than 50 people over the age of 12.
Since June 30, the health pass has been required for events involving at least 1,000 people. This measure thus affected large performance and sports venues, trade shows and exhibition fairs, and even discotheques since their recent reopening.
As a reminder, the health pass can take several forms, including a certificate of completion of the vaccination schedule for two or four weeks depending on the serum, a negative PCR or antigen test within the last 48 hours, or a certificate of recent recovery from Covid.
Pour @MartinHirsch , le pass sanitaire est un pass ‘liberté’ : “On est mieux armé face au variant Delta. 100% des patients qui rentrent en soins critiques sont des patients non vaccinés ou qui n’ont pas fini le schéma de vaccination” #le69Inter pic.twitter.com/sY13t9MjdI
— France Inter (@franceinter) July 13, 2021
Beginning of August: wide extension of the health pass
Long-distance transportation, planes, cafes, restaurants, shopping malls, and healthcare facilities will all be accessible only by the precious sesame beginning this month, contrary to a commitment made a few weeks ago.
The precise date is not specified because it will be determined by the timetable for the passage of the legislation required to implement this extension.
This measure also applies to employees in these industries, according to government spokesman Gabriel Attal on Tuesday, July 13.
“It would be incomprehensible for many French people to request a sanitary pass to limit contamination in certain places from French people who will visit them, but we do not ask the people who work in these places,” he said. He emphasized Europe 1 in his remarks.
When asked about employee implementation deadlines, Gabriel Attal stated that “for a person who has not yet had time to take his two doses, he can obviously benefit from the health pass by doing regular tests,” while admitting that “it’s not the most comfortable.”
During the Council of Minister’s report, he stated that these people (such as families with children aged 12-18) will benefit from “tolerance and flexibility” in applying for this pass.
At the very beginning of September: an appointment for a 3rd dose
Emmanuel Macron hopes that by implementing these stringent measures, he can encourage the population to get vaccinated more quickly. With this in mind, a recall campaign for the Covid-19 vaccine is expected to begin in September.
This third dose will be given to the most vulnerable people who were vaccinated in January and February, totalling nearly 1.7 million French citizens.
“I want to address myself to those who, vaccinated first, that is to say in January-February, will soon see their antibody level drop, their immunity decrease,” said Emmanuel Macron.
He added, “I want to reassure them. From the start of the school year, a reminder campaign will be set up to allow you to benefit from a new injection according to the same system and under the same conditions,” while specifying “that the appointments for this third dose could be taken from the last days of August.”
According to government spokesman Gabriel Attal, making an appointment will be possible “in the very first days of September.”
In addition, “vaccination campaigns” for middle school, high school, and college students will be organized “from the start of the school year,” he said.
To date, more than 35.5 million French people have received their first injection, and nearly 27 million have received a second injection. According to Doctolib, approximately 926,000 French people scheduled vaccinations on Monday evening, with 65 per cent of them being under the age of 35.
Vous êtes des centaines de milliers à avoir réservé un RDV de vaccination ce soir !
Ca tombe bien, on a des vaccins, des centres ouverts partout, et des dizaines de milliers de soignants, pompiers, agents des collectivités qui n’attendent que vous 😊👏👏— Olivier Véran (@olivierveran) July 12, 2021
September 15: final deadline for caregivers
After weeks of deliberation, a decision has been reached: nursing and non-nursing staff in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and retirement homes, as well as professionals and volunteers working with the elderly, including at home, have until September 15 to be vaccinated.
Following Emmanuel Macron’s speech, Minister of Health Olivier Véran stated on LCI that caregivers who have not been vaccinated by September 15 will “no longer be able to work and will no longer be paid.”
Employers – regional health agencies, school administration, and health insurance companies – “will be empowered to conduct checks for other diseases, particularly hepatitis B,” according to the legislation, he said.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Why Macron Hosted Automotive Industry At The Élysée Palace On Monday
On July 7, Olivier Véran and other health actors signed a text in support of the vaccination requirement for caregivers.
Autumn: end of free PCR tests
Emmanuel Macron declared that “beginning this fall, PCR tests will be paid for, unless prescribed by a doctor, to encourage vaccination rather than test multiplication.”
Emmanuel Macron hopes to accomplish two goals by significantly expanding the health pass and announcing the future delisting of so-called “comfort” PCR tests.
First, “pushing as many French people as possible to go get vaccinated” (the Doctolib site was stormed during the speech), but also to reduce the spread of the coronavirus by keeping people away from unvaccinated places at risk, without limiting the freedom of those who are vaccinated or imposing new closures.
The precise date of this measure’s implementation has not yet been communicated.
