ONLY ON AP: Italy's Roma struggle to access vaccines

Members of Italy's Roma community fear they're being left behind amid a slower than expected vaccine rollout in the nation.

At the Via Cantoni Roma camp in Rome, around 600 people, most from the Roma community, live in squalid conditions.

Some shacks and trailers in the camp accommodate families of more than ten people.

Drains in the area overflow and rubbish is strewn on roads, posing a challenge for residents to maintain good hygiene amid the coronavirus pandemic.

As Italy pushes ahead with its vaccination program, the one group that appears to be at the end of the line is the Roma nomad community.

This week, Italy's over-60 population started receiving their first shots following health workers, school teachers and university professors, the armed forces and people over 70 and 80.

However, elderly and fragile people living in Roma camps are not getting either vaccines or appointments both because of a lack of correct information and access to the internet.

Lazio Regional Council handles the vaccination program for the area which encompasses the Via Cantoni camp.

The council's Vice President of Health and Social Affairs Commission Paolo Ciani clarified that Lazio's vaccine roll out was being prioritised by age and frontline workers.

Non-profit organisation 21 July Association works with members of the Roma community in Italy.

It has estimated that there are about 18,000 Roma living in camps across Italy.