With currently 4.5 percent of the population who have received a booster vaccination so far, there is obviously a need for an information campaign to prepare for the corona wave expected in autumn. As Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) explained at the presentation on Monday in Vienna, in addition to the classic approach, advice is given close to the people, for which the support of the Chamber of Physicians and Pharmacists has been secured, among other things.
3.5 million have been budgeted for #GemeinsamGevacft for the time being. Rauch underlined the importance of a fourth vaccination by the fact that it reduces the risk of death by four fifths and that of a hospital stay by half. The target group of the campaign is on the one hand the elderly, i.e. the vulnerable group, and on the other hand the young, for whom the vaccination rate is generally low.
need for clarification
Johannes Steinhart, President of the Austrian Medical Association: “I like that the campaign is informative and not just cheering.” He stressed the importance of vaccination to prevent deaths. But there is an insane need for clarification and this is where you want to get involved. “You have to act very carefully, because there are also side effects and interactions – and you shouldn’t hide that.”
The Minister of Health assumes that around one million consultations will be held by Christmas. On the one hand with the doctors and in the pharmacies with their more than 400,000 customers per day, but also with the offer to hold information evenings at all 6,000 schools by medical professionals. Companies are also involved and 4.5 million reminders are to be sent out at the end of November to all Austrians whose last vaccination was more than six months ago. And finally, the towns and municipalities will also carry out their own information campaigns, in which they will be supported by the federal government.
Covid-19 risk patients would also be informed prophylactically about Covid-19 therapeutics. Because these should be administered as quickly as possible in the event of an infection. According to the Medical Association, their use has already increased significantly in the past two months.
As for the variant vaccines, the latest of which against BA4 and BA5 are already approved in the US, Rauch dismissed accusations of slowness in Europe: “I’m for speed and diligence.” The department head also did not want to accept criticism of the age recommendations of the national vaccination committee. Here there are different opinions of the experts. “The NIG weighs these carefully and has my full confidence.”
Source: Nachrichten
