Orbán cabinet: Hungary targets 70 pc vaccination rate by June

With the government working to procure as many Covid-19 vaccines as possible, Hungary could have 70 percent of its population inoculated by June, a government official said on Tuesday.

Achieving this target would give Hungary one of the highest vaccination rates in the European Union, allowing it to lift restrictions and reopen its economy earlier than other countries, justice ministry state secretary Pál Volner said in a parliamentary debate on extending the special legal order introduced to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Hungary’s use of the Chinese and Russian Covid vaccines will allow it to vaccinate 3.5 million more people by the end of May than if it relied solely on jabs procured by Brussels, Volner said.

Citing expert opinions, the state secretary said virus restrictions should remain in place for the time being, but expressed hope that they could be eased in the foreseeable future.