The Government of Austria announced this Sunday that as of February 1, 2022, compulsory vaccination against Covid-19 will be imposed on all residents in the country who are over 18 years of age.
The Ministry of Health indicated that pregnant women, people with medical exemptions and those who have been infected with the disease in the last 180 days will be exempt from the obligation. It also specifies that those who refuse to be immunized can face a fine of up to the equivalent of 4,000 dollars.
The measure will be applied in three phases: in phase 1, which runs until March 14, information will be provided and persuasion will be sought. Penalties will not be applied in this yet.
Phase 2 from March 16 where the vaccination requirement is verified based on the certificate issued by the control authorities. If you are not vaccinated, you can be fined the equivalent of $683. It is an abbreviated procedure (control, complaint, penalty for lack of evidence).
Then, in phase 3, a commission evaluates if the progress of the vaccination is sufficient. This phase is only activated in this case. First the reminder to get immunized is activated, if that doesn’t help you receive another call for an appointment. Whoever misses the appointment is automatically fined.
Austrian Federal Chancellor Karl Nehammer added that it is not about fighting the unvaccinated, but about expressing what is already known from the experts.
In turn, the unvaccinated will have to remain in quarantine every ten days, as these represent a greater burden for hospitals and that is why their quarantine remains in force.
“I am responsible for my own health and make my own decisions. But we are a community, and when it comes to community safety, it’s about the greater good, and we’re all responsible for that,” Nehammer said.
The chancellor promised to do everything possible to restore Austria’s freedom, as opposed to confinement with all the negative effects it brings to people, especially minors. “Defending freedom goes through mandatory vaccination,” he added.
However, the Ministry of Health specified that the law can be annulled if experts consider that immunization is no longer the proven remedy against the disease, for example, against a new type that is mild.
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