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Spain has vaccinated ‘almost all’ care home residents against Covid

Spain is on track to reach its inoculation goal this summer as almost all of its care home residents have now received two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, the FED care-home association told Reuters on Friday.

Published: 19 February 2021 15:32 CET
Spain has vaccinated 'almost all' care home residents against Covid
Image: Jaime Reina/AFP

Now that the vaccine has be given to the most vulnerable in the Spanish population, Spain can now begin to vaccinate the over 80s in the general population. 

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the country was on track to vaccinate 20 million people in the first half of 2021, in line with their summer goal. 

Spain has currently given 2.8 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine and has fully inoculated 1.14 million people.

If the goal is reached in time, it means that Spain will have vaccinated around 42 percent of its population of 47 million population by the middle of 2021. 

The news come as a great relief as over 31,000 elderly nursing home residents have died of confirmed ot suspected Covid-19 cases since the start of the pandemic. This is around 47 percent of the total number of deaths from Covid-19 in Spain.

Spain's public prosecutor is currently investigating more than 200 cases of potential criminal mismanagement of the Covid-19 pandemic in nursing and old people's homes. 

Now that 97 percent of nursing home residents have been vaccinated across Spain’s 17 regions, according to the FED, it hopefully means that the number of infections in care homes will continue to fall.

Health Emergency Chief Fernando Simon said earlier this week that for the first time since the start of the pandemic, people over 65 who live in care homes have a lower rate of infection than those who live in the general population.

FED’s president Ignacio Fernandez Cid said: “They are very positive data that allow us to be optimistic about the future. Immunity will allow us to gradually return to the longed-for lost normality.”

As well as care home residents, Spain has also been vaccinating healthcare workers and those who need full time carers. 

The next lot of Spain's Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines will be given to the over 80s, while the AstraZeneca vaccine will be reserved for other key workers under the age of 55, such as teachers, law enforcement officers, firefighters and members of the armed forces.

Healthcare professionals not working in hospitals will also be included in this group, such as pharmacists, physiotherapists, home assistance carers.

With current infection rates in decline, there are now 321 Covid-19 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in Spain, causing several regions to relax their restrictions.

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HEALTH

How many hours do I have to work to get access to public healthcare in Spain?

A common question among those wanting to move to Spain is if they will have access to the Spanish public healthcare system even if they only work part time or a few hours a week.

Published: 23 April 2024 10:57 CEST
How many hours do I have to work to get access to public healthcare in Spain?

In order to understand the answer to this question, you need to be aware of several rules on who has the right to public healthcare in Spain. 

In Spain, you have the right to access public healthcare under the following circumstances:

  • You are an employee or self-employed and are affiliated and registered with the social security system
  • You receive Spain’s state pension
  • You are the recipient of benefits, including unemployment benefits or subsidies.
  • You have exhausted your unemployment benefit or subsidy or other benefits of a similar nature and are unemployed and residing in Spain
  • Children under the age of 15
  • Students under the age of 26

You also have the right to healthcare if your spouse pays into the social security system or if you’re pregnant.

READ ALSO: Does permanent residency in Spain equal free public healthcare?

But what happens if you are an employee, but you only work part-time, does the number of hours you work affect whether you have the right to public healthcare coverage?

Even if you work part-time (or media jornada in Spanish), you will still be paying into the social security system automatically – part of it from your salary and part of it from your employer.

Therefore you will be affiliated in the social security system as in point one above. 

According to stats from Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE), a total of 6.6 percent of men in Spain in 2022 worked part-time and 21.6 percent of women. In September 2023, there were 2.9 million part-time employees in the country.

As far as social security is concerned, those who work part-time benefit the same as those working full-time when it comes to national healthcare, regardless of the length of their day. Part-time contributions count as one full day when it comes to paying social security.

READ ALSO: What to be aware of before accepting a part-time job in Spain

This rule, equating part-time work to full-time work was brought into force on October 1st 2023 in order to try and help reduce the gender pay gap in Spain, but was designed with the pension system in mind rather than national health coverage.

The advantage is that it also benefits those who want to work part-time and still be able to access healthcare. Even before this was brought into force, however, those working part-time and paying social security were still covered. 

All this means that there isn’t a specific number of hours you must work in order to be able to be covered under the Spanish healthcare system, and as long as you’re paying social security or fall into one of the categories above, you will be able to benefit from it.

Remember that if you’re not employed or self-employed in Spain and don’t have a spouse who is either, then you may not be covered.

To get around this you can either join a programme such as the S1 scheme for British pensioners or pay the convenio especial in order to benefit from public healthcare. For this, you will pay a monthly fee of €60 if you are under 65 and €157 if you are over 65. 

If none of these options are available to you or the requirements of your visa say so, then it’s necessary to get private health insurance instead.

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