Emmanuel Macron closes a debate.

The French President announced on Tuesday, November 24, during his speech concerning the relief of measures against the coronavirus pandemic, that the future vaccine against Covid-19 will not be mandatory in France.

The vaccination campaign, on the other hand, will be "rapid and massive" and may begin "at the end of December, beginning of January" for "the most fragile people".

This "subject to validation by the health authorities".

“I want to be clear: I will not make vaccination compulsory,” he said.

He hoped that this new step in the fight against the pandemic will be done "in a clear, transparent way, by sharing at each step, all the information, what we know, like what we do not know".

Contract with the EU "securing the number of doses" of future vaccines

"Some (vaccines) will be available from the end of December, beginning of January, and a second generation will arrive in the spring", also indicated Emmanuel Macron, ensuring that France, with the European Union (EU), had "secured the number of doses "needed.

A few hours before Emmanuel Macron's speech, the European Commission also announced that it had entered into a contract with the American company Moderna to provide up to 160 million doses of vaccine against Covid-19, the sixth concluded by the EU with a pharmaceutical laboratory.

The announcements of the French head of state come a few days after the publication of the results of several potential vaccines.

On Monday, the British laboratory AstraZeneca, associated with the University of Oxford, announced that its vaccine was effective 70% on average, even 90% in some cases, according to intermediate results of large-scale clinical trials.

Competitors Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna claimed an efficiency of over 90% a week earlier.

Administration "upon validation by health authorities"

The High Authority for Health indicated that it would publish "around November 30" its final recommendations on the public to be vaccinated as a priority.

Then, "probably around mid-December", it will give its final opinion on the organization of the vaccination campaign, currently under public consultation.

"We are going to organize a vaccination campaign (...) as close as possible to the people (...). The health authorities with the State, local communities, will define the practical arrangements for the deployment of vaccines with hospitals, homes retirement and all city doctors, "assured the Head of State.

To "guarantee health security, a scientific committee will be responsible for monitoring vaccination, a group of citizens will also be set up to involve the population more broadly", he added.

Only half of French people are ready to be vaccinated against Covid-19, according to various surveys carried out on the subject.

>> To read also: Covid-19: "A wave of mistrust towards a vaccine is to be expected"

With AFP

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