Paris (AFP)
More than 50 million French people have received at least one dose of the vaccine against Covid-19, announced Emmanuel Macron on Friday, 17 days after the deadline he himself had set, a sign of the shortness of a campaign which is coming to an end without having achieved all its objectives.
Who would've believed that?
France, which polls said last year divided between pro and anti-vaccine, has finally converted en masse.
The President of the Republic reserved the first of the announcement in a video posted on social networks.
Against the background of images filmed since the start of the vaccination campaign at the end of 2020, a counter scrolls to the number 50. "The vaccine saves lives, the virus kills, it's simple," said the Head of State at the end of this short clip, concluded with the slogan "United France against the Covid".
Of the nearly 58 million eligible people over the age of 12, more than 86% have now received at least one injection.
An inconceivable result at the beginning of the year, when the vaccine campaign floundered between ignition delay, drop-off deliveries and shutdown on the AstraZeneca.
So many frustrations which, by creating a feeling of scarcity, have increased expectations tenfold.
After a sluggish winter, the spring was prolific and the thresholds of 10, 20 and then 30 million first-time vaccines reached without incident, on the scheduled dates.
The case seemed settled at the beginning of the summer, once the third epidemic wave had passed, and the government was quietly aiming for 40 million at the end of August.
But the Delta variant caught the authorities by surprise, leading the Head of State to raise the target to 50 million, thus playing on constraint.
The obligation imposed on caregivers, and especially the health pass for all adults, has given vaccination a boost.
Covid-19: 50 million first-time vaccinated in France AFP
The excitement however quickly fell: after a record 2.6 million first doses at the end of July, the weekly rate has continued to drop, to less than 500,000 at the beginning of September.
- Last necklace -
The hoped-for "rebound" at the Ministry of Health has still not taken place, despite the efforts made to prick up to middle and high schools the 30% of teenagers still unvaccinated.
Except that "the students are not at the rendezvous", according to the main union of heads of establishments.
Adults don't do much better.
The coverage rate peaks in all age groups, in particular among the oldest: beyond 75 years, 10% have not received any dose, or nearly 700,000 people, even though they were the first to be able to be vaccinated in January.
France may well prance, with 74% of its population vaccinated, in 7th place among European countries - ahead of Belgium and just behind Finland - it lags behind in this category where several of its neighbors have a coverage above 95% .
Elderly person receives third dose of Covid-19 vaccine, September 13, 2021 in Paris THOMAS COEX AFP / Archives
The situation is also worrying seen through the prism of the chronically ill: regardless of their age, nearly 14% were not vaccinated on September 5 according to the Health Insurance, or about 2.6 million people at higher risk. to develop a severe form of Covid-19.
The "go to" devices put in place for several months to reach these audiences (home vaccination, ephemeral barnums, calls by the Social Security and attending physicians, letters of invitation) have demonstrated their limits.
With the approach of autumn, these holes in the racket leave open the hypothesis of a fifth wave.
Health authorities nevertheless hope to limit the damage with the "booster dose" proposed to 18 million adults - over 65 years and patients at risk.
A last blow of the collar before repacking?
The ministry is already preparing to close the vaccination centers, which sprouted up like mushrooms at the start of the year.
Depending on the capacity of pharmacists and independent doctors to take over, this step will take place between October and February.
Vaccination: France and its neighbors Kenan AUGEARD AFP
The executive, which already evokes a relaxation of the health pass, could thus mark the end of the mass vaccination, a few months before the presidential election.
© 2021 AFP