'Europe's moment': COVID-19 vaccination to begin on December 27 across EU
Coronavirus in Spain
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said today that Europe will start its COVID-19 vaccination drive post-Christmas from December 27.
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"It's Europe's moment. On 27, 28 and 29 December vaccination will start across the EU," Ursula von der Leyen said in a tweet.
The European Union will be sending out the vaccine to all 27 member nations. The EU Commission president had earlier stated that the EU will begin its drive on the same day.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is being produced at afacility in Belgium and sent out in trucks and planes. The vaccine needs to be stored at -70 degrees Celsius to keep it viable.
Europe has been hit hard with the virus as countries have issued new guidelines ahead of the crucial Christmas season fearing a bigger surge in cases.
The Netherlands, Germany and France have introduced new curbs.
Germany had declared earlier that it will begin vaccinations on December 27 ahead of European Commission president's announcement today as the Franch government said that it would receive around 1.16 million vaccine doses by end 2020 and a further 2.3 million over the next two months in 2021.
Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez entered quarantine Thursday after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron who tested positive for the virus on Thursday. The Spanish PM's wife was infected with the virus in March when the virus began spreading in the country.
Spain has been one of the hardest-hit countries in the EU hit by the virus with over 48,000 fatalities and 1.7 million infected cases. Several countries including Sweden which had earlier contained the virus are now experiencing a new surge as Europe grapples with the virus.
In Sweden on Monday, the number of people receiving hospital care reached 2,406, near the peak of 2,412 in April. The death toll in Sweden due to coronavirus has reached 7,802 with 500 last week and over 1,800 since the beginning of November.