Greece Launches COVID-19 Vaccine Certificates to All Vaccinated Citizens
After being among the first European countries to support the idea, Greece has become among the first ones to launch a digital vaccination certificate for all persons who have taken the two doses of the vaccine against the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).
The announcement has been revealed by Greece’s Digital Governance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis, while the country’s authorities aim to vaccinate the vast majority of its citizens by summer to help revive the tourism sector and facilitate the travel process, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.
The General Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Marios Themistokleous, said that Greece is in fourth place regarding COVID-19 vaccinations.
Themistokleous said that over 30,000 citizens took the vaccine against COVID-19 on February 22, stressing that about 725,000 have been vaccinated in total as yet.
The General Secretary of the Ministry of Health further revealed that trends in vaccine appointments are increasing, highlighting that more than 1,420,000 arrangements have been completed up to this point.
“The proposal focuses on border crossings,” Themistokleous emphasized in this regard.
“We propose that when you cross the border to go to another country, to have of course the possibility to have a test and to be quarantined, but also, if you have been vaccinated, to have the opportunity to cross the border easily,” he stressed.
Themistokleous recalled that Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis previously sent a letter to the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on the EU to back the document’s launching that would facilitate the travel.
So far, different European countries and organizations have different opinions regarding digital vaccination certificates.
While the idea is supported by Denmark, Czechia, Greece, Hungary, Cyprus, Estonia, Portugal, Italy, Iceland, Slovakia, Poland, Spain and Sweden, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the World Health Organization Committee opposed the plan stressing that vaccines’ effect on minimizing transmission is yet unknown.
About ten months ago, AtoZSerwisPlus.com had warned that once a vaccine against the Coronavirus is approved and available, the EU would make it a requirement in order to permit travel throughout its territory. The information had been confirmed by an EU official, who had also noted that proof of vaccination would also be required for applying for a visa to any of the Schengen/EU countries.
Greece’s authorities recently announced that incoming flight bans and mandatory quarantine rules for international arrivals would be prolonged until March 8. The decision has been announced by the Civil Aviation Authority (CYA).
More than 180,670 persons tested positive for the Coronavirus pandemic in Greece, as yet, and 6,321 persons died, based on Worldometers’s statistics.
Over 161,250 persons have been completely recovered from the disease in Greece, while there are reported 13,099 active cases; therefore, the government continues to urge its citizens to avoid all unnecessary travel in order to bring the Coronavirus situation under control as soon as possible.
