Coronavirus vaccine in Hungary

Travel issues of people with Eastern jabs to be solved?

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An MEP for the opposition Socialist party has called on Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to seek out a solution at the upcoming EU summit to the travel restrictions of some 2 million Hungarians inoculated with Chinese and Russian Covid vaccines.
 
Recipients of the Sinopharm and Sputnik vaccines cannot travel freely in Europe because the jabs are not accredited by the bloc, Istvan Ujhelyi told an online press conference on Wednesday.
 
Újhelyi said the government had failed to raise the issue in the European Health Security Committee. He called on the prime minister to insist that the summit finds a solution to the situation of Hungarians “who
 
have become second-class EU citizens”
 
because of the “dubious purchase of the so-called Eastern vaccines”.
 
 
“The government has done nothing about the issue, only seven member states have so far signed bilateral agreements on accepting the Eastern vaccines,” Újhelyi said.
 
The government could solve the bind by concluding bilateral agreements with all member states on accepting the Russian and Chinese vaccines,
 
Újhelyi said. Another solution would be that the EU accepts an EU-accredited booster jab after two Eastern vaccines as full inoculation, he said.
Katalin Karikó Hungarian Scientist
Read alsoCould the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

You can travel to this country with your immunity certificate from today!

wizz air
Hungary has concluded an agreement with Tunisia on mutually recognising Covid-19 immunity certificates, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Wednesday.
 
Under the agreement, Hungarians who have been inoculated against Covid with any type of vaccine can enter Tunisia upon presenting a negative PCR test from December 16, the minister said in Tunis, according to a statement of the foreign ministry.
 
Hungary has now reached agreements on mutual recognition of Covid immunity certificates with 26 countries,
 
Szijjártó said.
 
The foreign minister held talks with Othman Jerandi, his Tunisian counterpart, and they signed agreements on cooperation in health care, welfare, diplomatic education and culture. They also signed a cooperation agreement between Hungary’s Eximbank and Tunisia’s National Agricultural Bank (BNA).
 
 
At a joint press conference after the meeting, Szijjártó said that Hungary would provide 150,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines and 10 ventillators to Tunisia to help its coronavirus protection efforts. The contribution can also help maintaining stability, he said, adding that Europe’s security was “depends to a great extent” on developments in the African continent.

Increasing the rate of full vaccination and ease pressure posed by migrants coming from the African continent is key to Europe’s security, he said.
 
“Tunisia, and North Africa, can play a key role in this endeavour which is why the Hungarian government is providing medical and defence support to the country,”
 
Szijjártó said, noting Hungarian training programmes for Tunisian law enforcement and police forces.
 
Speaking about economic ties, Szijjártó noted a 38 percent increase in this year’s volume of trade. He also noted education cooperation in framework of which Hungary provides university grants to 200 Tunisian students each year. Szijjártó said Tunisia is a highly popular travel destination, with some 15,000 Hungarian visiting the country in 2019.
 
Later in the day,
 
Szijjártó is scheduled to meet President Kais Saied and several ministers, the ministry said.
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Read alsoNew Wizz Air flight to Africa!

Breaking news – Omicron variant present in Hungary!

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The Omicron coronavirus variant has been detected in Hungary, according to Cecília Müller, the chief medical officer.

The omicron variant has been detected in two people, Müller told public television current affairs channel M1 on Monday.

She noted that

the Delta variant is still by far the most dominant variant in Hungary.

Today omicron variant was detected in two laboratory samples, Müller said. She added,

one of the infected has mild symptoms, the other is in a moderate condition and is in hospital.

Chief medical officer added that the omicron variant is already spreading in Europe, so it was to be expected that this strain would also appear in Hungary.

She also said that further observations and research on the omicron variant are ongoing.

The programme also said that the national health officer believes that

the third vaccine is now more important than ever.

The Hungarian-owned diagnostic laboratory Neumann Labs informed MTI in a statement that the two confirmed cases of infection with the omicron variant so far have been identified at Neumann Labs, and that

the mutation infected a couple whose members had not visited abroad, so they must have contracted the disease at home.

In addition to the confirmed omicron infection of the couple,

the Hungarian lab is investigating other suspicious cases,

they added.

They said the Hungarian laboratory’s recently introduced new PCR test can detect all new coronavirus infections and separately detect whether the latest omicron mutation caused them.

tram-scandal-47
Read alsoPassengers almost hit a virus denier for not wearing a mask on a tram – VIDEO

Could the Omicron variant end the pandemic? – Katalin Karikó is hopeful

Katalin Karikó Hungarian Scientist

Leading scientist Katalin Karikó, who has greatly contributed to the development of the Covid-19 vaccine, gave an interview in the Sunday programme of the Hungarian Kossuth Rádió.

In the radio programme, she was interviewed about a few questions concerning the doubts around vaccination, and she debunked a few misconceptions, shedding more light on the nature of vaccines.

Karikó also talked about the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus, and she believes that there is hope that this might be the last Christmas where we have to deal with restrictions.

Why the need for a booster jab?

To the question of why people might need to get a booster jab, Karikó said the following to Híradó.hu:

When people are vaccinated, a healthy body will create antibodies based on the protein found in the vaccine. When this happens, these antibodies will enter the bloodstream and will also be found in the mucus membrane of the nose.

read also: Passengers almost hit a virus denier for not wearing a mask on a tram – VIDEO

As the number of antibodies begins to diminish, likewise in the mucus membrane, people who have been vaccinated a while ago could be infected more easily than those recently vaccinated. Karikó added that the antibodies can also be present in breastmilk, giving a sort of protection to the children of breastfeeding mothers.

She highlighted that while people who have been vaccinated can get infected since their immune system has previously encountered one of the proteins of the RNA of the virus, it can react thanks to the memory cells, thus helping to mitigate the severe symptoms of the virus infection, potentially saving people, she told Híradó.hu.

However, underlying health conditions and obesity can have a major effect on the mortality rate of infected people.

read also: Hungarian Olympic champion in critical condition due to coronavirus

Karikó refuted the claims that the vaccine causes the coronavirus infection. She explained that mRNA vaccines only contain a string of protein derived from the virus’s RNA.

New variant to end the pandemic?

About the Omicron variant, the Hungarian scientist said that in vitro testing is currently ongoing regarding the effectiveness of the vaccines against the new variant. The data is not yet sufficient, she added.

Katalin Karikó said that if the new Omicron variant takes over the Delta variant, there is a possibility that it could end the pandemic.

She highlighted that it is not yet proven, but she is hopeful that this might be the last Christmas people have to spend the holidays under epidemiological restrictions.

Coronavirus in Hungary
Read also Omicron variant detected near Hungary + latest COVID data

Hungary reports 16,017 new infections over weekend

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Altogether 455 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the weekend, while 16,017 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Monday.

So far 6,190,822 people have received a first jab, while 5,893,531 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 3,005,109 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 170,416, while

hospitals are treating 6,531 Covid-19 patients, 565 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 1,198,939 infections have been registered, while

the number of fatalities has risen to 36,884.

Fully 991,639 people have made a recovery.

There are 43,047 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,853,922.

Coronavirus-hospital-people-in-mask
Read alsoCOVID peaking + new flu variants to hit Hungary

Number of deaths, new infections still high

Coronavirus Hungary
Altogether 166 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours, while 6,884 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday.
 
So far 6,176,567 people have received a first jab, while 5,883,873 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 2,906,959 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 177,596,
 
while hospitals are treating 6,939 Covid-19 patients, 573 of whom need respiratory assistance.
 
Since the first outbreak, 1,182,922 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 36,429. Fully 968,897 people have made a recovery.

There are 55,544 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,768,881.
Coronavirus Hungary
Read also Number of deaths, new infections still high

Omicron: not detected in Hungary, detected in Hungarians!

Coronavirus-omicron-test-Bratislava
So far no samples have indicated the presence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in Hungary, Zoltán Kis, a virologist of the National Public Health Centre told public television on Friday.
 
But reports from neighboring countries suggest that the new variant will
 
soon appear in Hungary,
 
too, he added.
 

According to index.hu, the South-African variant was detected in a 34-year-old Hungarian living in Germany. He was among the first cases in the country producing a positive test on December 1. Regarding the symptoms, he said that he was physically weak, coughed every second and had a high fever (39.9 Celsius degrees). He could not sleep and eat though

did not lose his smell and taste. 

He received two Pfizers, but the level of antibodies was probably low by the time he got the omicron variant, he added.

Meanwhile, PM Viktor Orbán said in his morning interview that the vaccine is the only remedy.

The fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic is at its peak “or maybe a little beyond”

in Hungary, and taking the vaccine is the only way to flatten the curve, he cleared. In an interview with public radio, Orbán said the latest surveys showed a slight decrease in the number of new coronavirus infections, those needing hospital treatment, or ventilators. “There are always losses, but the situation is improving overall,” he said, noting the 166 victims of the disease in the past 24 hours.

“On Thursday, 51,666 people were vaccinated, 42,453 of whom got the third jab,” he said. That is especially important around Christmas, as

holding large Christmas gatherings will depend on “whether we are vaccinated,”

he said.

Featured image: illustration

Read alsoLaw enforcement to collapse because of the mandatory vaccination?

COVID peaking + new flu variants to hit Hungary

Coronavirus-hospital-people-in-mask

Experts say that we should expect a severe flu epidemic because of the current moderate epidemic measures and the new variants that have appeared since last year. The good news is that there are multiple vaccines against the flu in Hungary. They can be administered two weeks after the Covid-19 jabs. MTI reported that 215 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours. Meanwhile, 7,310 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.

New flu variants evolved in Asia

According to experts talking to Magyar Nemzet, 15-20 pc of the population gets the flu virus regularly. Last year, this rate was 0, but

the prognosis for 2021 says that the ratio will be around 30-40%.

That is because, last year, there was no traffic between Hungary and South-East Asia where the new flu variants evolve. Thus, they could not get into Europe. Furthermore, even if they did, they did not have a chance to spread because of Covid-19 measures, like mask-wearing. 

However, in 2021, such measures are much more moderate, so the virus will have a chance to spread, Dr Lajos Ócsai, the Head of the Department of Epidemiology Office of the Chief Medical Officer of State, told the Hungarian daily. The H3N2 variant of the virus, for example, has

already been detected in Croatia, the Netherlands, Russia, Scotland, Ireland, and Sweden.

He said that the outbreak of a flu epidemic is inevitable in places where authorities do not ban mass events.

Therefore, people should accept the flu vaccine. This is extremely important for those struggling with other diseases because both the coronavirus and the flu viruses make other illnesses worse.

This is why it is worth administering the flu jab

Furthermore, the flu has a lot of post-symptoms, too.

It increases the probability of a stroke, an aneurysm, and other cardiovascular catastrophes five- or tenfold.

Dr Ócsai highlighted there were three vaccines available in Hungary against the flu. All of them are the products of classic procedures, and the French one can be administered even to pregnant women.

He added that the flu vaccine could be injected two weeks after the Covid-19 jabs.

Meanwhile, the fourth wave is peaking in Hungary, with high mortality rates and infection numbers. According to MTI, a total of 

215 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours, while 7,310 new coronavirus infections were registered, 

koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday. So far, 6,171,489 people have received the first jab, while 5,878,951 have been fully vaccinated. A total of 2,864,506 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 184,527, while hospitals are treating 7,119 Covid-19 patients, 579 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 1,176,038 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 36,263. 955,248 people have made a full recovery. There are 53,187 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,734,938.

Read alsoLaw enforcement to collapse because of the mandatory vaccination?

Law enforcement to collapse because of the mandatory vaccination?

The inoculation rate of the people working in law enforcement is around 70 pc currently – the employee leader of the BÉT (domestic bargaining commission) said. Pál Powell added that the lowest inoculation rate is among the colleagues working in the field.

Judit Bárdos, the chairwoman of the BRDSZ trade union, said that 10 thousand out of the 36 thousand employees working in law enforcement were not inoculated. Meanwhile, these numbers are 2 thousand and 15 thousand in the case of administration employees – Népszava reported.

30 pc of their employees of the National Directorate General for Disaster Management did not get the jab. In the case of the 7,000 firefighters, the figures are even worse. The inoculation rate is only 60 pc among them.

There are still a lot of questions about the mandatory vaccination of law enforcement employees. The government summoned the domestic bargaining commission in November. But they could not answer a lot of questions. One of the most pressing issues was whether those not regularly meeting with clients have to receive the vaccine or not.

According to the relevant government decree, the last deadline for the employees of law enforcement bodies is 31 January. However, in the case of those, who regularly meet with clients, it is 15 December. The leaders of the different law enforcement branches had to write their suggestions on modifications by 30 November. The decision is in the hands of the interior minister, Sándor Pintér.

However, nobody knows when he will make up his mind and whether he will announce the final rules before the deadline, 31 January. 

– blikk.hu said.

That creates considerable uncertainties in the system and among the law enforcement employees. Trade unions say that there will be many people who would not accept the vaccine because of various reasons. For example, because the level of antigens is high in their blood and they have an official certification of that. There are several other questions the government did not give a straight answer to. For example, nobody knows whether employees sent on unpaid leave will receive their so-called “weapon money”, which equals their half-year salary.

One of the trade unions warned the minister.

They admitted that Pintér was right to clear that only healthy people can serve and protect the country. However, those sent on unpaid leave cannot serve, they added. Therefore, the biggest question is how the system will survive the mandatory vaccination because labour shortage has been severe for years because of the low salaries. The trade unions highlighted that if more employees are sent to unpaid leave, overtime work will not be enough to fill the gaps.

Read alsoLaw enforcement to collapse because of the mandatory vaccination?

Passengers almost hit a virus denier for not wearing a mask on a tram – VIDEO

tram-scandal-47

A scandal was video recorded on tram 47 in Budapest. An old woman made comments about a child wearing a mask on public transport and criticized the mother. Passengers expressed their opinions as well, and the situation quickly turned into an aggressive argument.

Coronavirus has a negative impact on society. Some people lost their jobs, others suffered the tragic loss of their loved ones. But no matter how small or immense someone’s losses are, there is one thing that people share in common: many otherwise kind people are suffering from the stress and the negative impacts of the pandemic. This could have been one of the reasons why a comment instigated an argument on tram 47 in Budapest.

Blikk wrote that an elderly woman commented on a child wearing a mask. She expressed her opinion many times and said that the child could not breathe. The mother of the child replied that the child can breathe and they are wearing a mask on public transport to protect themselves and others.

The situation quickly escalated, and passengers took the side of the mother. The older woman said that the other passengers “believe in propaganda” and “experimental vaccines”. The scene ended in people shouting, and a man started yelling at the top of his lungs.

The video depicting the events was recorded by a journalist working for ATV. The video was broadcasted on TV and also shared on ATV’s Facebook page with the caption “Disturbing, sad video.”  On the recording, we can see the older woman, who did not wear a mask, getting into a heated argument.

Someone told her to “shut up”, while another person told her to “put on her mask.” Another passenger who cannot be seen on the recording, but sounds like a child told her to “put on her mask or get off” the tram. A very angry man started yelling at that point, telling the elderly person that is because of people like her that people are coping with a pandemic. He added that the whole pandemic would be over if the old person and people with a similar mindset “would not be this stupid”. Then what sounds like a child’s voice loudly tells people to “call the police”.

A nurse, who works at the Covid department said something as well. The elderly person said “shame on you”. Then she allegedly got off the tram.  

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Read alsoThese are the positive and negative news about the new Omicron variant

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Hungarian Olympic champion in critical condition due to coronavirus

The 51-year-old former Hungarian Olympic champion receives hospital care in Budapest and is currently in an intensive care unit.

Szilveszter Csollány, Olympic, world and European champion gymnast is on a ventilator – says Magyar Nemzet. The 51-year-old former athlete is currently being treated in the intensive care unit of a hospital in Budapest due to the complications of the coronavirus infection.

The former athlete caught the coronavirus three weeks ago, and his condition began to deteriorate a week ago.

The newspaper called Csollány on the 23rd November to make their usual Saturday interview, but Csollány asked to postpone it due this his illness. Last Monday, he only responded to the newspaper by a text message, saying, that he was still not able to make the interview because he was being hospitalised. After that, he did not respond to the inquiries anymore.

The Hungarian Gymnastics Association said that they cannot confirm or refute the fact that Csollány is in the hospital.

“I do not know details about Szilas’s status or well-being” – said Csollány’s former coach, István Vereckei according to Borsonline.

The trainer continued: “Even the fact surprised me, that his body, his immune system was not resistant to the virus. I talked to him regularly on the phone and he recently mentioned that he started running half marathons. This is good for fitness, but it was unusual to hear because gymnasts are not known for their passion for long distance running. We even organised a cooking competition together. He claimed that he was better in the kitchen than me. However, when he tasted my cooking, he admitted that I was more competent with the spoon. I wish he will visit us again as soon as possible, and we can make some Christmas delicacies together. I pray for his speedy recovery.”

Csollány worked as a coach in Austria and was often sharing Covid-skeptical and anti-vaccination content on his Facebook page.

He won an Olympic silver medal in 1996 and a gold medal in 2000 as well as world championships and European championships.

Coronavirus hospital
Read alsoNew statistics show how many vaccinated people are treated in Hungarian hospitals

Omicron variant detected near Hungary + latest COVID data

Coronavirus in Hungary

The omicron variant of the virus was detected in Croatia, the country’s public health institution told yesterday. Based on the HZJZ’s decision, regardless of whether one is vaccinated or not, they have to go to a 14-day-long quarantine provided they got in touch with people having the South-African variant.

According to portfolio.hu, those concerned have to do a PCR test on both the first and last day of their quarantine. The Croatian public health authority announced on Monday the detection of the new variant in two citizens. They took part in an international conference a couple of days before. Later that day, they published a new statement clearing that

they found the third omicron-infected patient.

In Croatia, there are 2,436 patients treated in hospitals, 319 of them receive respiratory assistance.

Reuters reported that “British drugmaker GSK (GSK.L) said on Tuesday its antibody-based COVID-19 therapy with U.S. partner Vir Biotechnology (VIR.O) is effective against all mutations of the new Omicron coronavirus variant.”

New Hungarian coronavirus test detects 99% of the variants in 6-10 minutes

In Hungary, altogether 213 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours, while 6,849 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday. So far 6,166,840 people have received a first jab, while 5,874,429 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether

2,824,464 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 184,295, while hospitals are treating 7,206 Covid-19 patients, 607 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 1,168,728 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 36,048. Fully 948,385 people have made a recovery. There are 47,718 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,701,776.

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Read alsoThese are the positive and negative news about the new Omicron variant

Top court: vaccine mandate for healthcare workers legal

Healthcare
The government mandate requiring health-care workers to get vaccinated against Covid is not unconstitutional, as it serves the smooth functioning of the health-care system, the Constitutional Court ruled on Friday.
 
Under the government decree making Covid vaccination mandatory for health-care workers, those refusing to get the jab are to be fired and are not entitled to severance pay.
 
Health-care employees lodged hundreds of appeals
 
with the Constitutional Court challenging the constitutionality of the mandate.
 
 
In its Friday resolution, the court rejected the complaints, saying that the vaccine mandate served to guarantee the smooth functioning of the health-care system, patient safety and the enforcement of patients’ right to life and health.
 
The vaccine mandate for health-care workers is constitutional and a “proportionate restriction”,
 
the court ruled.
 
The Constitutional Court also cited the World Health Organization’s (WHO) position that public health goals such as the containment of a pandemic warrant the use of legal coercion as a last resort.
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Read alsoPM Orbán: vaccination day to be held in all localities within 6 weeks

WizzAir: 90 pc of the crew members vaccinated

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Wizz Air, Europe’s fastest growing airline, today announces that 90% of its crew members are now vaccinated, following its 1 December deadline requiring flight and cabin crew to be vaccinated – or get regularly tested at their own cost – unless they recently recovered from COVID-19. The requirement underpins the airline’s commitment to protecting the health and safety of its passengers and employees.

Following Wizz Air’s announcement in September to introduce COVID-19 vaccines for all its flight and cabin crews, the airline can confirm that their vaccination rate is ahead of the average vaccination rate in most of its markets.

The policy does not mandate vaccination, however crew members

who are not vaccinated will have to cover the cost of their own testing from December 1 onwards.

Unvaccinated crew members, who can provide medical proof of exemption, will be able take antigen/PCR tests on regular bases.

Aggressive Hungarian wanted to stop the plane on the Seville-Budapest line – VIDEO

The decision to require crew to have the COVID-19 vaccine reflects research which demonstrates the vaccine’s effectiveness as the best available form of protection against COVID-19.

Wizz Air has also organised regular webinars and one-to-one consultations with virologists to educate its staff about the vaccines, and answer any questions the employees might have.

Johan Eidhagen, Chief People Officer of Wizz Air Group said: “We are pleased to announce that 90% of our flight and cabin crew members are already vaccinated. At the start of the pandemic, we led the industry with our stringent health and safety measures, as we fully understand the responsibility to protect crew and passengers onboard by mitigating the risks of COVID-19, and we recognise the crucial role that the vaccine plays in this.”

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Government not to follow Austrian restrictions

Hungary-government-info

Gergely Gulyás, the PM’s chief of staff said yesterday that current epidemic rules differed from previous ones since now everyone had a free choice on whether to get vaccinated or not, and the government did not plan to introduce restrictions like those in Austria and Slovakia. The consensus is that the fourth wave of the epidemic was now peaking and the descent would start at around Christmas, he added.

Asked about vaccine mandates, Gulyás said decisions on making Covid jabs mandatory had to remain a national competency. Hungary has introduced strict vaccine mandates in workplaces where workers interact with many people, the health-care sector, public administration and schools, he noted.
 
Employers can also mandate their employees to get vaccinated,
 
he added.
 
More than 100,000 people got jabbed each day last week during the national vaccination campaign, Gulyás said. And though only half as many people are getting a shot this week, the daily vaccination rate is still significantly higher than in the weeks before the campaign, he added.
 
 
 
Because many people got their second dose over six months ago, a booster shot would be timely for them, since they are now less protected against the virus, Gulyás said.
 
Whether there will be another wave of the pandemic and how severe it will be depends on the number of people who get the booster jab,
 
he said.
 
Hungary has more than 2.8 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine in stock in addition to 778,000 doses of Moderna, 3.1 million doses of the Janssen jab, and more than 2 million doses of Sinopharm, he said. Also there are more than 1.6 million doses of AstraZeneca which will soon reach their expiration date, so the government will donate them to other countries, he added.

Gulyás said current epidemic rules differed from previous ones since now everyone had a free choice on whether to get vaccinated or not, and the government did not plan to introduce restrictions like those in Austria and Slovakia. The consensus is that the fourth wave of the epidemic was now peaking and the descent would start at around Christmas, he added.
 
 
Regarding compulsory vaccinations, he said 92 percent of teachers in public schools have been jabbed, and the Dec. 15 deadline for a first shot still applied. Gulyás said that those who got
 
the Sputnik jab would have to wait for the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to approve the vaccine in order to travel freely within Europe,
 
and Hungarian diplomacy was doing everything possible to get the EU to change its standpoint on the Russian vaccine.
 
He also broached the subject of a possible fourth shot,
 
saying enough supplies would be at hand should the medical establishment advise getting one. Regarding the change in how ventilator data is reported, he said the new data reflected the distinction between intubation, which qualifies as a life-saving intervention, and other forms of assisted respiration. He added there was no reason not to disclose data on non-invasive ventilated patients.
 
He said the operative board responsible for handling the pandemic could soon decide on changes to the validity of Covid immunity cards. However, the government will not have to issue new cards even if they were to be made invalid six months after the receipt of the second vaccine dose, as they contain information on the number of jabs the card-holder has received, he said.
 
Meanwhile, Gulyás said he preferred not to comment on information provided by the mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, that Fudan University had
 
abandoned its plan to build a campus in Budapest,
 
adding that the government’s position on the Fudan project was clear. The question of when the land would be transferred was, for example, “a technical question”, he added.
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PM Orbán: vaccination day to be held in all localities within 6 weeks

Vaccine-coronavirus
A vaccination day will be held in all Hungarian localities within the next six weeks, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told public radio on Friday.
 
In the interview, Orbán predicted that the number of people opting for a booster jab against Covid-19 would “skyrocket”. Some one million vaccines were administered by Thursday evening in the first two weeks of the campaign, he said. Around 800,000 were booster jabs, and 115,000 went to people who “for whatever reason” had not accepted the vaccine before, he said.
 
Hungarians are much safer thanks to the vaccine,
 
he said. So far, 2.6 million people, or 27 percent of the population, have received a booster jab, compared with a European Union average of 10 percent, he said.
 
Given that the effectiveness of vaccinations declines after six months, the government will contact citizens in person, by email, text message or by post to ask them to get a booster. Orbán
 
praised doctors, nurses, police and soldiers, saying they had withstood the challenges,
 
and Hungary’s health system was still standing despite the strains. Commenting on the omicron variant, the prime minister the scientific community was as yet unclear as to its dangers or speed of transmission, but initial reactions of fear were likely to turn out to be greater than dangers posed by omicron. Still, he urged caution.
 
 
Meanwihle, altogether
 
191 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours,
 
while 10,143 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday. So far 6,145,984 people have received a first jab, while 5,858,119 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 2,665,330 Hungarians have received a booster jab.
 
The number of active infections stands at 189,002, while hospitals are treating 7,463 Covid-19 patients, 566 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 1,143,869 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 35,122. Fully 910,745 people have made a recovery. There are 60,555 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,559,975.
 

Important changes to come in immunity certificates in Hungary!

Hungary-government-info
The government has decided to add another week to the national vaccination drive now under way, the prime minister’s chief of staff said at a regular press conference on Thursday.
 
Gergely Gulyás said that changes to the validity of vaccination certificates with regard to the holder’s having received a booster jab were being considered. Gulyás also announced that
 
vaccines for the age group 5-11 would arrive in Hungary on December 13,
 
a week earlier than planned, adding that a total 2 million doses had been ordered.
 
 
Gulyás welcomed Hungary’s increasing vaccination rate, saying the country was in first place in the European Union in terms of the proportion of booster jabs administered, with 2.6 million Hungarians having received their third shot. Everyone who provided an email address when receiving their first shot will be contacted by email and invited to get a booster, he said, adding that the government trusted that people who wanted the first two shots would also want a third.
 
Referring to press criticism of Hungary’s vaccine purchases, Gulyás said the government had not changed its vaccination policy.
 
“The government estimated vaccine need correctly but it will make further purchases so shots are available for age groups that could not be vaccinated before,”
 
he said.

Gulyás said Hungary had all vaccine types available except for the Russian Sputnik V, adding that there was “an abundance” of vaccines on the international market and possible further purchases would not be difficult to make. Meanwhile, he said the scheme to
 
cap public utility fees would be rolled out to small companies and municipalities.
 
This, he added, was “one of the most important tools” the government had to fight inflation.

Gulyás said global energy prices were now “unrestrained”, and he warned that the price of electricity, which had “perhaps grown highest on the world market”, must not be applied to retail price calculations. He reiterated that scheme would also apply to Hungarian small businesses with up to an annual 4 billion forints (EUR 11m) net turnover or balance sheet total that employed fewer than ten people.
 
Local governments will also get the same access because “there appears to be significant demand for this among local councils”,
 
he said.
 
Gulyás also said it was important that the operations of local governments should go undisturbed and the situation resulting from the pandemic and the global market should pose the least extra burden on them. He said the National Bank of Hungary was making every effort to fight inflation, and the government was contributing to the fight by maintaining and expanding reduced public utility fees and fuel prices. It is hoped that Hungarian inflation figures will fall by the end of next year and “we can return to the ordinary path”, he added.

EU to introduce mandatory vaccination soon?

Vaccine-hospital

It is high time to consider making the vaccines mandatory – the president of the European Commission said on Wednesday. She highlighted that the relevant decisions must remain the power of the member state governments.

According to hvg.hu, Ursula von der Leyen said we needed to talk about how the EU can encourage people to get vaccinated. She added that we also have to discuss the matter of mandatory jabs.

“We have to establish a common position in this question”

– she said.

Vaccination week ‘very successful’ in Hungary, says medical officer

According to MTI, altogether 218 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours, while 10,466 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.

 
So far 6,138,885 people have received a first jab, while 5,852,417 have been fully vaccinated. Altogether 2,609,385 Hungarians have received a booster jab. The number of active infections stands at 187,795, while
 
hospitals are treating 7,450 Covid-19 patients, 550 of whom need respiratory assistance.
 
Since the first outbreak, 1,124,726 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 34,931. Fully 902,000 people have made a recovery.
 
There are 59,593 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 8,516,699.
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