BERLIN (AP) – German lawmakers approved by a large majority on Friday a bill that requires staff in hospitals and nursing homes to be vaccinated against COVID-19, the first of two vaccination mandates being studied in the country.
Health Minister Karl Lauterbach had said earlier in Parliament that it was inconceivable that some of those who work with especially vulnerable people were not yet vaccinated.
“This vaccination mandate is necessary because it is completely unacceptable that, after two years of pandemic, people who have entrusted us with their care are dying unnecessarily in institutions because there are unvaccinated people who work there,” he said. “We cannot accept it.”
Of the 689 votes cast in the lower house, 571 were in favor of the measure and 80 against, while 38 other legislators abstained.
The law, which is being processed urgently, must be ratified by the upper house, something that could happen later on Friday.
Lawmakers are working on a second, more controversial bill that would make the vaccine mandatory for the entire population, which could be debated in parliament next month.
The far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, opposes the universal vaccination order. Some members of other parties, including former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government health minister, said they will also vote against the measure.
If the upper house, the Bundesrat, passes the law on Friday, starting in mid-March next year, healthcare center employees will have to prove they have the full vaccination schedule or passed COVID-19 recently to work. .
According to official figures, around 69.4% of the 83 million inhabitants of the country are vaccinated.
Lauterbach, the new Health Minister, urged lawmakers to put aside politics to support the bill, which includes measures such as allowing pharmacists, veterinarians and dentists to administer vaccinated vaccines, and the option to restrict sporting and health events. leisure and closing restaurants in areas with a high incidence of contagion.
“We have no time to lose,” he said.
Germany reported 61,288 new COVID-19 cases and 484 deaths in the last 24 hours. Doctors have warned that although the number of new cases is falling, the peak of hospitalizations could be reached during the Christmas holidays.
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