Austria introduces mandatory COVID-19 vaccination from February 1

Mandatory vaccination campaign against coronavirus will start in Austria from February 1, 2022, Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg announced on Friday.

"Today we have made a very difficult decision - to introduce compulsory vaccination very quickly, it should be in effect as early as February 1, 2022," Schallenberg said at a press conference.

Schallenberg also announced the introduction of a total national lockdown from Monday for a maximum of 20 days. According the chancellor, the lockdown for the unvaccinated people increased the readiness of the population to vaccinate, but not sufficiently.

Since November 15, a lockdown has been in effect in the country for those who are not vaccinated against COVID-19. Nevertheless, the epidemiological situation continues to deteriorate - the daily incidence regularly breaks records, the intensive care units are on the verge of being overloaded with COVID-19 patients. (ANI/Sputnik)

( With inputs from ANI )

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