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On December 17, Health Minister Roberto Speranza wrote on Twitter that “December 27 will be a good day for Italy and for Europe,” setting the start of coronavirus vaccinations for that date. Speranza’s announcement comes after several European countries have been pushing for days to start the vaccination campaign on the same day throughout the European Union – a move that is likely to demonstrate unity in one of the most delicate periods since the start of the pandemic. , in which, among other things, several countries have issued strict new rules to prevent a third wave of the pandemic.
December 27 will be a good day for Italy and Europe. We still need caution and the road will not be short. But with the start of vaccines we are finally on the right track.
– Roberto Speranza (@robersperanza) December 17, 2020
The “symbolic” beginning of vaccines
On Wednesday, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also said in a speech during the plenary session of the European Parliament: “We started as soon as possible with vaccines, together, 27 o’clock on the same day. Just as we have faced this pandemic together, let us begin together to eradicate this terrible virus.
The start of vaccinations on December 27 will only be possible after the EMA, the European Medicines Agency, decides to recommend the vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech to the European Commission, which will then autonomously formalize the authorization. It was precisely news that the EMA had advanced a meeting to December 21 to evaluate the request for authorization of the vaccine to draw up the proposal to start vaccinating Europeans on the same day.
If the EMA recommends the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to the European Commission on December 21, vaccinations that will begin in the last days of 2020 will be with “token” quotas. It is a definition used on Wednesday, for example, by Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke, but also by Italian commissioner for the coronavirus emergency, Domenico Arcuri, in his press conference on Thursday night.
It is not yet known exactly how many doses of the vaccine will reach each member country of the European Union at the end of December, but according to Vandenbroucke each country should have about 10,000 “symbolic” doses: the first people to be vaccinated, according to Arcuri, they will be chosen from among hospital staff and older guests in nursing homes.
The vaccine, free and voluntary, region by region
We certainly know that on Wednesday the State-Regions Conference approved the Italian plan for the administration of the vaccine that Commissioner Arcuri had presented. On December 2, Minister Speranza, presenting the plan in Parliament, explained that the vaccine would be free for all and that the government was not willing to make it mandatory. Arcuri also confirmed at Thursday’s press conference that the mass vaccination campaign will begin in January with the first 1,833,975 doses distributed by Pfizer-BioNTech and shipped to the regions.
The province of Bolzano will receive the highest number of doses of the vaccine in relation to the inhabitants (almost 5,200 per 100,000 inhabitants), followed by Friuli Venezia Giulia and Emilia-Romagna (both more than 4,100), Piedmont (almost 4 thousand) , Liguria (almost 3,900), Basilicata and the province of Trento (both more than 3,400). The region that will receive the least is Umbria (almost 1,850 per 100,000 inhabitants). These are not exact numbers, but an estimate based on the population of the regions in 2019.
– Read also: The doses of vaccine that the regions will receive in proportion to the population
Who will be vaccinated first
The vaccine will be administered in the initial phase mainly to health and social workers, residents and staff of the RSA and the elderly (even if the plan does not specify what age will give priority to vaccination). Other categories will then be vaccinated, such as teachers and school staff, law enforcement, prison staff, and community venues. Pfizer’s second guaranteed supply will be 2,507,700 doses.
In Thursday’s press conference, Arcuri said that for Italy – if all vaccines are authorized – in total there will be 202 million doses, as expected, but not in 15 months but in 21 months “because Sanofi (French pharmaceutical company , ed), which was supposed to give us 40 million doses in the third and fourth quarters of 2021 has a delay and will give them to us in the second and third quarters of 2022 ”. For Arcuri, between next summer and next fall there will be enough doses to be able to vaccinate “all Italians who want it”. Next, Arcuri explained that from February vaccination will begin “in decreasing order of frailty, descending the age curve”, that is, from the oldest to the youngest.
The pavilions
On the morning of Sunday, December 13, Commissioner Arcuri had presented the communication plan for the vaccination campaign together with the architect Stefano Boeri during a press conference. The symbol in the center of communication will be the primrose, a fairly common flower in Italy and one of the first to open at the end of the cold season. The idea, Boeri explained, was to offer a coordinated image for the entire campaign, using a symbol associated with the idea of recovery and return to life.
In addition to the symbol, the construction project of the pavilions that will be located in several Italian cities was also presented, with information on vaccination and areas dedicated to the administration of vaccines.
They will be cylindrical structures with movable internal dividers, which can then be moved to organize the spaces differently according to the needs. The roof will have solar panels to produce the electricity needed by the pavilion, while the main structure will be made of wood and can be dismantled and reassembled in different areas of the city. The circular shape should favor an orderly flow of visitors and health personnel who will administer the vaccines.
However, during the presentation, Arcuri did not provide much information on how many pavilions will be built in Italy, nor how its activity will be coordinated with that of clinics, hospitals and other facilities that will administer the vaccine. However, he had confirmed that at full capacity the administration sites will be at least 1,500 in Italy, but also in this case without providing data on the methods and times of realization.
More doctors and nurses for vaccines
As for the personnel who will be in charge of vaccines, as of December 16, doctors, nurses and health aides, who want to contribute to the implementation of the vaccine administration plan, can send their request electronically on a portal special. The contracts will have a maximum duration of nine months, and may be renewable if necessary. The call, which provides for the hiring of 15 thousand professionals, is also aimed at foreign citizens. Retired doctors can also apply. These are personnel who will be selected to strengthen regional health systems during vaccination. During his press conference on Thursday, Arcuri said 11,282 applications had been submitted within 18 hours of the selection opening.
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