European Union Launches COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout to Inoculate 450 Million People

Against a backdrop of harsh restrictions and national lockdowns, the European Union’s 27 member nations launched a joint vaccination campaign on Sunday, with an aim to inoculate more than 450 million people against COVID-19 and its new strains. Health care workers were the first to get the vaccine in Italy, while nursing home residents were the first in line in France. And the Czech prime minister was the first in line in that country. Most nations plan to offer the vaccine to residents free of charge. All 27 member nations received the vaccine over the Christmas holidays and Sunday’s coordinated effort called “V-Day” was meant to send a signal of unity in the fight against the coronavirus though a nursing home in Germany and two health care centers in Slovakia and Hungary jumped the gun and were vaccinated on Saturday. “Today, we start turning the page on a difficult year,” Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president wrote on Twitter. “The #COVID19 vaccine has been delivered to all EU countries.”