The government is examining the possibility of obligatory vaccination for all doctors and nursing staff in the National Health System (NHS), Health Minister Thanos Plevris announced in parliament on Thursday.
Up to now, doctors and nurses in the NHS who refused to get vaccinated for coronavirus were placed on suspension with pay and given three months to reconsider before being terminated. Plevris clarified that the measures will be extended another three months, to March 31, 2022 before the medical staff lose their jobs.
“The government is seriously examining turning vaccination of front-line medical staff to an obligatory measure,” Plevris said. “The pandemic’s development shows that the suspension measure should be extended to March 31,2022. The measure will be re-evaluated then and [the government] is seriously examining making it obligatory for those offering their services to the NHS. They must decide within this three-month [extension] period. They must be vaccinated as long as the pandemic lasts. The government is unwilling to give another extension to the suspension measure, and it is clear that [those who do not comply] will not be able to offer their services”, Plevris underlined.
SOURCE: AMNA