Greece: Unjabbed over-60s face monthly 100 euro fine as mandatory vaccines introduced
30 November 2021, 23:53 | Updated: 1 December 2021, 09:16
Unjabbed over-60s must get vaccinated or face a monthly fine of 100 euros, the Greek prime minister has warned.
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Those in the age group will be slapped with a €100 (£84) fine from 2022, in the Government's attempts to crack down on the most vulnerable being unvaccinated.
It will be added to tax bills from January 16 for individuals refusing to go ahead with the vaccine mandate being put in place.
The money is said to be going towards the Greek health system, which has been under added pressure throughout the pandemic.
Only 60,000 over-60s came forward to get vaccinated in November, leading to the Greek Government deciding to push forward with tougher restrictions for the elderly.
Vaccination mandates were previously introduced for health care workers and fire service rescuers in Greece, with those failing to comply being suspended from their jobs indefinitely without pay.
It comes as the country's overall Covid death toll exceeded 18,000 this week, with around a quarter of the country's adult population remaining unvaccinated.
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Prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said: "The new Omicron variant is a concern for us and means we must be vigilant.
"Unfortunately, of the 580,000 unvaccinated of our fellow citizens over the age of 60, only 60,000 set up appointments to get vaccinated in November.
"But it is mainly people over 60 who require hospital treatment and sadly lose their life. These deaths are unnecessary."
He added: "This is protection, not punishment."
It comes as the latest Covid variant - Omicron - has caused concern around the world, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) saying there was an "increased risk of reinfection" due to several mutations of the variant.
In the UK, 22 cases have been identified - 13 in England and nine in Scotland.
