Driven by the BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants, the epidemic is eating away at France again. To fight against Covid-19, the most vulnerable French people are returning to vaccination centers in order to complete their protection scheme, after repeated calls from the government to this effect. Only people over 60 and the immunocompromised are, to date, eligible for this second booster dose. At the end of June, the number of injections had greatly increased: more than 70,000 French people received their second booster dose every day, according to CovidTracker figurescompared to around 31,000 on Wednesday 22 June.
It must be said that there is still room: according to the latest weekly update from Public Health France, published on Thursday June 30, 25.5% of people aged 60-79 received the second booster dose and 31.3% for 80 years and over. After having skated for a long time – with the drop in the circulation of the virus and the weariness of vaccines – the vaccination campaign in France is experiencing a boost at the start of this summer.
How are the territories keeping up? For the moment, the reopening of vaccination centers is not on the agenda: on July 5, the Minister of Health, François Braun, declared that it was not yet necessary to open centers of vaccination: “As soon as we are interested in the most fragile public, the capacity for vaccination is sufficient today”. While the biggest behemoths have closed their doors for several months, the protection campaign is based on a handful of centers, pharmacists and general practitioners or nurses. Throughout the territory, the situation is heterogeneous and some departments lack vaccination slots.
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Nice, Cannes… Extended vaccination windows
In order to obtain a vaccination slot in a pharmacy or with a doctor, you have to wait “at least ten days in Vendée, in Landes, in Tarn, in Côtes-d’Armor, or even Haute-Savoie”, supports an article by France info. Concerning the Drôme and the Ardèche, the requests for vaccination have tripled: the week from June 27 to July 3, 2,897 people received an injection inside the Drôme, 2,291 in the Ardèche, report our colleagues from France Blue. Three weeks before, they were 1043 in Drôme, and 679 in Ardèche. Figures that jump as the circulation of the virus accelerates. The two departments record incidence rates (number of people sick with Covid-19 per 100,000 inhabitants) which are close to 1,000.
In Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur – where the incidence rate stands at 1151 – the local authorities are working hard. In Nice, the hours of the vaccination centers have been extended. The City has sent a message to those over 80 to get vaccinated. “A new vaccination center can open if necessary within 48 hours,” said Wednesday, July 8, the municipality led by Christian Estrosi in a statement. Same thing in Cannes, where the town hall led by David Lisnard has reinforced its vaccination slots at the municipal center.
In the Bas-Rhin, the Sélestat vaccination center, located at the town hall of Heyden, open on Wednesday, plans to receive patients also on Saturday to meet the high demand. In the Centre-Val de Loire, the population is being vaccinated with a vengeance: the number of people who received their second booster dose increased from 16.5% to 19.10% between June 28 and July 5 according to the data provided by the Regional Health Agency. A figure that is above the national average set at 16%. Christophe Lugnot, chief of staff at the ARS, decided that it was not yet necessary to open a new vaccination center.
But, during this summer period, the territories could lack arms. And what about the stock of vaccines? About 69 million doses are currently in reserve. As of June 27, France has 15,315,084 doses of Pfizer, 20,039,470 doses of Moderna and 1,798,280 doses of Novavax, it was recalled in The Express. Added to this is the marketing of the first vaccine developed by a French laboratory, Valneva.