Mandatory vaccination debates are growing in Europe

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said in a statement in December that "I am in favor of the European Union's discussion of mandatory vaccination, but this decision belongs to the member states" and threw the ball to the governments. Austria is the only EU country to make the vaccine mandatory so far. Around two-thirds of the population across Europe is vaccinated. The proportions of citizens who have completed two vaccinations in the four major EU countries are as follows: France 74.6 percent, Italy 75.9 percent, Spain 80.5 percent, Germany 72.3 percent (Source: Our World In Data). In Europe, governments are increasing the pressure on vaccination with measures that will make the daily lives of the unvaccinated more difficult. But each government's view on making the vaccine mandatory is different. In Germany, the parliament is divided on the implementation of compulsory vaccination The bill, which obliges healthcare workers to be vaccinated in Germany, passed the parliament in December, and until March 15 was given to complete the vaccinations. The government is now working to make vaccination compulsory for all citizens. Prime Minister Olaf Scholz is particularly keen on mandatory vaccination. At the end of January, his party, the SPD, is expected to bring the vaccine mandatory bill to parliament. But the junior partner in the tripartite coalition, the FDP, is already split on the issue. Nearly 30 MPs from the FDP argue that mandatory vaccination is unconstitutional. The far-right party, AFD, is already against all forms of vaccines. In other parties, there are different opinions among the deputies. Therefore, in the current picture, it seems difficult for the bill to pass Parliament. But it is clear that this issue will be discussed in all its aspects and parties in Germany until the end of the month. Discussions are currently centered around two axes. The first is the legal aspect of the business, and the second is the question of the effectiveness of vaccines against new mutations. In France, Macron preferred to restrict social life instead of compulsory vaccination France, one of the first countries to impose a vaccination obligation on healthcare workers, also suspended nearly 3,000 healthcare workers who had not completed their vaccinations by October 15, 2021. President Emmanuel Macron recently announced in an interview with the Le Parisien newspaper that he does not want to take a mandatory vaccination decision, but that he will limit the access of the unvaccinated to social activities as much as possible. At the time, Macron's words "I want to annoy them with their lives" were found inappropriate by the opposition parties and caused a great debate in parliament. These statements by Macron came after the vote on the bill on the vaccination passport was delayed by the efforts of the lawmakers who united against the government. Vaccination is mandatory in Italy over the age of 50 The state of emergency continues in Italy due to the Covid-19 outbreak. At the beginning of the new year, the government introduced a vaccination obligation for those over 50. The Covid vaccine was already mandatory for healthcare workers, education personnel, and members of the army and police. The Council of Ministers announced the decision taken for those over 50, on the grounds of "slowing down the increase in cases and providing protection to citizens at high risk of hospitalization". In addition to Italy, the Czech Republic and Greece have made vaccination mandatory for those over the age of 60. The fine of 100 euros per month for those who are not vaccinated is considered a quite low amount. Due to the awareness of citizens in Spain, the discussion of compulsory vaccination did not even come to the fore In Spain, which has the highest vaccination rate among the highly populated countries in Europe, the necessity of vaccination was not even discussed. Health Minister Carolina Darias stated that the Spaniards show high awareness of the benefits of the vaccine and that they will continue to apply the optional vaccine. It is known that courts in Spain are also against such coercion and restrictions. The closure decision, implemented between March and May 2020, was declared unconstitutional by the courts. Mandatory vaccination seems to occupy the agenda In the majority of the member states of the European Union, certain occupational groups are required to be vaccinated. But as we mentioned at the beginning, the only country that makes vaccination compulsory for all adults is Austria, for now. From February 1, Austrian citizens who are not vaccinated will face fines of up to 3,600 euros. The issue of compulsory vaccination is not only controversial, but also seems to have occupied the agenda for a long time as a highly complex issue due to its legal and health-related dimensions.