Covid-19: vaccination centers soon to close – LCI

The vaccination campaign is running out of steam. With 1.8 million injections carried out last week against 2.4 million the week following Emmanuel Macron’s announcements concerning the implementation of the health pass (from July 19 to 25), the government plans to close the centers of vaccination this fall or no later than February 2022, according to a document from the Ministry of Health consulted Tuesday by AFP.

If he is optimistic about a “load of injections” from 2.9 million doses per week in September, the weekly rate would then drop to 1.3 million in October, 0.7 in November, 0.6 in December then 0.4 and January and February. That is to say, on the basis of 4.3 weeks per month, more than 27 million vaccinations before the end of the winter, of which a large part for the “booster dose” which potentially targets 18 million people.

Beyond the slowdown in the vaccination campaign, the date of closure of the centers will also depend on the ability of pharmacists and private doctors to take over. Depending on whether the Liberals can perform 750,000 or 300,000 injections per week, this “would imply a closure of the centers in October or February”.

Caregivers contacted by AFP are cautiously optimistic. On the side of general practitioners, “we have the capacity to vaccinate if we are given the doses”, says Jacques Battistoni (MG France). Among pharmacists too, “from the moment we have the doses, there is no difficulty in doing 750,000 vaccinations in the city”, believes Philippe Besset (FSPF).

Pfizer’s orders will be opened to them on Monday, for delivery from October 1, but the Liberals are scalded by the repeated logistical failures of other vaccines (AstraZeneca, Janssen and Moderna). If everything goes without a hitch this time around, “a priori the closings of centers will take place at the end of the year”, predicts Philippe Besset.

Unless there is a new twist, because the ministry does not exclude “the possibility of a recall in the general population”, that is, a third dose for all.