Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

COVID-19 ALERT

EXPLAINED: How Austria’s compulsory vaccine mandate could be back in June

The much-debated policy sparked controversy since before it was approved in February, meaning that May could be a definitive month in the country.

Published: 16 May 2022 10:43 CEST
third dose vaccine spain
The vaccine mandate is set to automatically return in June - unless the government does something about it.

Austria’s Federal Government has a ticking time bomb on its hands: an ordinance that suspended its vaccine mandate law is set to expire by the end of May, which means that the controversial mandatory vaccination would be again in place as early as June 1st.

In order to keep that from happening, Austria’s Health Ministry needs to extend the current regulation or create a new one.

If it doesn’t, the Covid-19 mandatory vaccination law would automatically be back in June.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: What are Austria’s plans to bring back the vaccine mandate?

Since, by June, the vaccine mandate stated that non-vaccinated would start getting fines, the resumption of the law would mean that, from next month, those who are not vaccinated could be fined in routine checks, such as traffic checks.

The ins and outs of the vaccine mandate

The law was first introduced in February, even though the technical requirements for it to be enacted were not in place. The first stage of it was purely “informational”, and Austrian residents received letters explaining about vaccines and about the regulation.

A second stage, when people could have been fined if they were not vaccinated, was set to start in mid-March. Before a single person was fined, though, Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) suspended the law with an ordinance.

The law was suspended for a variety of reasons, primarily due to the relatively high vaccination coverage the country had already received, along with the lower virulence of the Omicron variant. 

READ ALSO: Austria to scrap mandatory Covid vaccinations

To create a new regulation or extend the existing one stopping people from being fined, Rauch must await the report of the vaccination commission, which should be ready in May, according to the Ministry.

The coronavirus commission will assess whether the Vaccination Act is suitable and useful from a medical and legal point of view. A previous report said there were arguments for and against mandatory vaccination for those who were completely unvaccinated.

READ ALSO: How Austria’s attempt to make vaccines mandatory changed the country

Der Standard reports there is little political support for compulsory vaccination and says there are still technical problems regarding automated fines. However, according to the Ministry of Health, the infrastructure should be completed in June.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

COVID-19 RULES

Vienna to drop Covid face mask mandate by end of February

The Austrian capital Vienna will no longer require people to wear face masks on public transport after its Covid-19 decree expires at the end of February. Here's everything else that is changing.

Published: 8 February 2023 14:52 CET
Vienna to drop Covid face mask mandate by end of February

The FFP2 mask mandate currently in place in all Vienna public transport and its stations will fall on February 28th, the city’s mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ), said in a press conference on Wednesday.

“After considering all aspects and the epidemiological situation, the hospital situation and current model calculations, it is now justifiable not to extend the special corona regulations for Vienna after February”, the mayor said.

For several months, the Austrian capital has been the only province with a strict FFP2 mask mandate in public transport, as the city decided to keep stricter rules against the coronavirus pandemic. 

However, earlier this month, Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) announced that the country would drop all Covid restrictions by the end of June. Vienna could have kept its regulations until the end of July when the Covid Measures Act, which allowed provinces to opt for stricter guidelines, expires. 

The mayor also announced that other measures valid only in Vienna would expire by the end of February. The stricter rules for visitors in hospitals and elderly homes, who had to present a negative PCR test, will also fall. Additionally, employees at these establishments will no longer have to go through a weekly screening for Covid-19. 

READ ALSO: Austria to drop all Covid restrictions by the end of June

However, the obligation to wear masks in hospitals and nursing homes would end only on April 30th, as it is a federal determination.

“A special thank you goes to all employees in the health system. Mainly thanks to them, Vienna passed the test and prevented conditions like those in other countries”, Ludwig said.

According to the mayor, the goal now is to continue to expand the healthcare system and keep its high level. “In this way, everyone will continue to have the best possible medical care in the future”, he added.

SHOW COMMENTS