Coalition set to buy a million coronavirus vaccines from Romania

over 4 years in The Irish Times

The Government is set to buy one million Covid-19 vaccine doses from Romania.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin held talks with the Romanian president Klaus Iohannis on Friday morning and they agreed in principle to the purchase.
Romania halted the importation of vaccines due to a slow uptake among its citizens in recent days and has already sold more than a million doses to Denmark.
“The Taoiseach has consistently been making every effort and working with his counterparts across Europe to increase the number of vaccines made available to Ireland, ” said a spokesman.
Romania and vaccination
As part of this process the Mr Martin and Mr Iohannis have agreed in principle to the purchase of one million vaccines, the spokesman confirmed.
This process is continuing and is yet to be completed. But the Taoiseach will continue to work with Government colleagues to expedite the vaccine programme. This includes discussions with the European Commission and with member states, particularly those who may have potential surpluses, added the spokesman.
About 24 per cent of Romania’s 19 million residents have been fully inoculated. But the rollout has faltered in the provinces of the largely rural country due to poor infrastructure, wariness of the state and the spread of conspiracy theories through communities where health education is often poor.
At the same time, a slowing infection rate has weakened the impetus for some in Romania to get vaccinated: only 31 new virus cases of and five deaths were reported on Thursday, adding to a national total of 1.08 million infections and 33,786 fatalities.

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