Covid-19: How many older people have not yet received a dose? – LCI

It’s not just the third dose in the vaccination campaign. This Tuesday evening, November 9, during his speech at 8 p.m. (to be continued on TF1 and LCI), the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, must announce measures to improve the coverage of the booster dose for the eligible public.

But the Head of State will not forget to encourage vaccination the millions of French people who still have not received the slightest injection. According to data from the Ministry of Health stopped on November 7, they are 6.7 million in the country.

For several months, the government has however multiplied messages encouraging vaccination, first reassuring about the absence of serious side effects, then praising its effectiveness in the face of severe forms. He then took action, by imposing the health pass to access many popular places, then by ending the reimbursement of tests (for the unvaccinated).

An arsenal of measures that has not convinced the most resistant … or has not affected the most isolated populations. Because in addition to opponents of vaccination, a public particularly worries the authorities: the elderly.

Also according to the Ministry of Health, 534,000 people over 80 have not yet been vaccinated, despite their vulnerability to Covid-19, or 13% of the age group. Several measures have been taken to remedy this problem, “France’s Achilles heel”, according to Professor Antoine Flahault.

First the home vaccination, then the sending of “invitations” with slots reserved in vaccination centers thanks to “transport vouchers”, and recently the launch of a toll-free number dedicated to over 80s. But the pace does not seem to have picked up again. Last week, only 0.1% of people over 80 received their first dose, the ministry told LCI.

The findings are similar for the following age groups. 734,000 French people aged 65 to 79 are not vaccinated, as well as around 1.1 million aged 50 to 64. So many people who represent a potential reservoir of the virus, but who should not forget the wide vaccination coverage in the country: 89% of eligible French people (12 years and over) are now vaccinated.