French Health Minister François Braun said on Thursday, March 30, medical workers who are not vaccinated against Covid-19 would soon be permitted to work again, following a recommendation issued by the Health Authority (HAS).
Braun told Agence France-Presse "a decree" would be issued after talks take place with hospital federations and other health organizations. While the ministry said the government's position would also be informed by the opinion of the National Ethics Advisory Committee (CNCE), due by the end of April, it promised to "move quickly enough to reintegrate [medical] professionals."
The principle of reinstating these employees, who represent 0.3% of health professionals, according to the ministry, has therefore been definitively confirmed. The HAS recommended downgrading the Covid-19 vaccination obligation to the level of a "strong recommendation."
"The lifting of a vaccination obligation for professionals does not call into question the value of this vaccination, whether in the workplace or the general population," the HAS said. This position was expected but greeted with incomprehension by a large part of the healthcare community.
In this new recommendation, which is also focused on vaccination requirements for diphtheria, tetanus, polio and hepatitis B, the HAS has taken into account current epidemiological data, which show that new infections, hospitalizations and deaths have remained at very low levels despite a resurgence in the number of appointments with general practitioners and hospital emergency visits over the past three weeks.
A survey conducted earlier this month (March 6-12) showed a new Omicron subvariant, XBB.1.5, which has raised alarm among scientists after its rapid spread in the United States in December last year, was now dominant in France with tests showing a prevalence of 59%. XBB.1.5, the HAS said, "has similar characteristics to all the other Omicron sublineages."
Every day, however, still more than 20 die from Covid-19 in France. "The end of the epidemic is not there yet, we could be in for some surprises," said Elisabeth Bouvet, in charge of the HAS' technical commission on vaccinations. "This recommendation may be reviewed, depending on the evolution of the epidemic."
The HAS said it had taken its decision given that vaccination rates (including a booster shot) among the general population (60%) and medical workers are high (86.4%-88.9% ). Combined with immunity acquired from past infections, this ensures that, "of those patients who develop symptoms, most (about 80%) recover without the need for hospitalization."
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