Germany to boost inoculation drive with securing COVID-19 vaccine supplies for 2022

Germany's health minister Jen Spahn said that he wants to secure new COVID-19 vaccines for the year 2022 and give a boost to the inoculation drive.  According to the reports by AP he said as of now it is not clear when the boost will be needed. This comes after the German government faced criticism for the sluggish start to the country's vaccination campaign. 

Current situation in Germany

As per the reports by AP, by Friday, January 29, 1.85 million people had received a first vaccine dose. Also, more than 461,000 had a second dose. During a video conference, German-based pharmaceutical giant Bayer announced that it was linking up with German company CureVac to help in boosting the vaccine’s development and distribution. 

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In the official press release, Minister-President of the state North Rhine-Westphalia Armin Laschet and Health Minister Jens Spahn said that this was ‘a good signal’ before the vaccination summit. Laschet said, “Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia as a location for research, business and chemistry can be funded”. He added, “I would like us to see how important it is not to depend on world markets at such a moment, but to produce independently. In this respect, it is a double good day for Germany”. 

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The German government has pledged to vaccinate all its citizens by September. Health Minister Jens Spahn said, “We could carry on like last week -- council leaders criticize governors and state ministers, state ministers criticize federal ministers and the federal government, the federal government criticizes the European Commission and all criticize the manufacturers. The virus is the enemy, the opponent, and no one else. We all have responsibility and we are responsible above all for doing better”.

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Read: Germany Wants Push To Secure 2022 Vaccine Supply