That is what the Dutch Marlies Karman says. Last week she got into the car to get a vaccine in France, and she found that quite exciting. Because would they really give her a shot? Free and for nothing? Without annoying discussions? The stress during the drive from Utrecht to Dedain was ultimately for nothing: Karman (49) ended up in a warm bath when she arrived at the French vaccination location.
“We came in, I stuttered a bit in French, and the lady behind the table said kindly: ‘Ah, you must be Dutch?’ From that moment on I knew everything was going to be okay.”
Booster campaign too slow
Despite the fact that Hugo de Jonge announced last week that the booster campaign in the Netherlands will catch up – before January 1, all people over 60 must receive a booster shot, those under 60 are due from January – this is not going quickly for several Dutch people such as Karman. enough. “If it is up to the Netherlands, with a bit of luck I would get a third shot in February. That would mean that I still have to go through the winter without full protection. That is not possible for me and my family.”
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Karman has cystic fibrosis, a cystic fibrosis that is not placed in a risk group in the Netherlands, but where infection with corona can still be very dangerous. During the first corona period, she was therefore in quarantine with her husband and two sons for months. “We were relieved after the two vaccinations, but my concerns have recently increased again: a new virus variant that is going around like crazy, the pressure on care that is increasing and the booster campaign that just doesn’t get started. In addition, my 16-year-old My year-old son has already stopped going to school, out of protection for me. That was the last straw for me: something had to be done.”
‘Hope others read this’
After some tips from people who had successfully preceded Karman abroad, she decided to make an appointment in France. And it worked. “It was very simple, and now that I have that third shot, I feel better protected again. I hope that others who are in the same situation read this. There are so many distressing cases: people who isolate themselves again, children who are stay at home. This is no longer possible, they must be helped, and so there is a solution abroad.”
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Not only in France is a third injection now being given in the Dutch arms. Also in Germany there are Dutch people queuing for a booster shot, such as Kurt Aulman. Yesterday he drove from Eindhoven to Alsdorf in Germany. “We are 60+, but we were absolutely not sure that we would get another booster shot in the Netherlands this year at this rate. Because the protection of our previous vaccinations decreases due to our age, we wanted to be well protected. Especially with the different variants of the coronavirus that are now circulating. Fortunately, we were able to get that protection elsewhere and we took that opportunity with both hands.”
‘Nobody was difficult’
Did Aulman get crooked faces from the Germans in line? “No, not one. Nobody made a fuss, even though I was the first Dutchman there. I am very happy that we are one in Europe, and that this is possible.”
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The 64-year-old Trudi also drove to Germany with her husband yesterday. They received their third shot in Aachen without discussion and completely free of charge. “After driving 159 kilometers, we were very nicely received at the vaccination location. We first received a sticker in our yellow vaccination booklet and then we were allowed to take a seat for the jab. We sat for another fifteen minutes to see if everything went well, and we could Yesterday evening we received an email with all the details of the vaccination and with that we can get a German QR code.”
‘I’m so relieved’
Because Trudi and her husband had been given AstraZeneca the first two times, they no longer felt safe. “In the Netherlands it would be our turn in December, but no one believes in that anymore at this pace. I am so happy and relieved that I have now received the shot in Germany.”
The national government has announced on their website that it is currently not yet possible to register a foreign booster shot in the Dutch CoronaCheck app. A solution for this is being worked on.
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Public health: ‘We don’t stop anyone’
According to the Dutch Ministry of Health, people are free to travel abroad. “Everyone should do what they want, we don’t stop anyone at the border, but we do say: you should not take a booster too early. That is why we ideally do it in the seventh month after you have had your last shot. before, the operation is not optimal.”
“It is also fastest for your Digital Corona Certificate if you simply get vaccinated at the GGD,” says a spokesperson. “Then the booster is immediately registered correctly.”
As of today, people with birth year 1945 in the Netherlands are invited for a booster shot. In the short term, the GGD will scale up to 750,000 vaccinations per week.
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