One of the causes of the busy telephone line is an invitation letter from the RIVM, which was sent this week to a large group of people via GPs. The letter invites 60-year-olds living at home with morbid obesity or Down’s syndrome to make an appointment for a Pfizer vaccine.
The letter also states: “If you make an appointment before Monday, April 19, you will receive priority at the GGD.” This sentence, in combination with the fact that according to the RIVM, GPs “have invited a little more widely than stated in the instructions”, leads to peak activity at the GGD.
The GGD says that the information in the letter is “incorrect” and that people from the intended medical high-risk group can also call for an appointment after the weekend.
The invitations did not go entirely well because of the high time pressure, says a spokesman for the RIVM. “Of course we want to vaccinate them as soon as possible, it is not without reason about risk groups,” said a spokesman. “But there really is more time, April 19 is not a hard deadline.”
The letter below was initially given to 60 minors with morbid obesity. According to the RIVM, the date April 19 has now been removed:
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