Greece, (Europe Brief News), Greece has imposed a fine on unvaccinated elderly people as part of the country’s new measure to limit the virus surge.
People above 60 years old should pay fines of up to 100 euros a month if they refuse COVID jabs.
The penalties start with €50 fine in January and followed by a monthly fine of €100 after that.
The country has witnessed a rise in death rate and daily hospitalisations following the recent spread of the Omicron variant.
Health Minister Thanos Plevris said fines would be collected through the tax office with the money to be used to help fund state hospitals.
“The age factor is important because of its impact on the public health service,” Plevris said on Sunday.
A vaccination mandate was imposed for health care workers last year. Starting February 1, vaccination certificates for adults will expire after seven months unless the holder receives a booster shot.
New infections sharply surged in early January and have eased over the past week.
Greece has the seventh-oldest population in the world, as measured by share of residents aged 65 and over.
Half of Europe to Catch Omicron
The World Health Organization (WHO) said half of Europe will catch Omicron.
WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge said a “west-to-east tidal wave” of Omicron was sweeping across the region. The Delta variant is on top of a surge, he added.
The projection was based on the seven million new cases reported across Europe in the first week of 2022.
The number of infections has more than doubled in a two-week period.
“Today the Omicron variant represents a new west-to-east tidal wave, sweeping across the region on top of the Delta surge that all countries were managing until late 2021,” Dr Kluge told a news conference.
He quoted the Seattle-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation as forecasting that “more than 50 percent of the population in the region will be infected with Omicron in the next six to eight weeks”.
The WHO has earlier warned of ‘tsunami’ of COVID cases in the near future. The declaration was due to Omicron spread.
The WHO further warned of the risk posed by the Omicron variant after COVID-19 case numbers shot up by 11 percent globally last week.
