Italy is expected to give the green light to an ordinance that will make a COVID-19 health pass a strict requirement for all workers in both the private and public sector, as part of a series of efforts whose objective is to accelerate vaccination.
The new mandate will take effect on October 15 as part of the latest effort by Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi's extensive campaign to persuade his constituents to get fully vaccinated and prevent more sickness in one of the nations that has been badly affected by the global health crisis.
No measure of this kind has been enforced in Europe. "We're putting ourselves at the forefront internationally," Italy's Public Administration Minister Renato Brunetta said in quotes by Reuters.
While some member nations in the European Union have required their medical personnel to get inoculated, no other state has implemented the so-called "Green Pass" that is compulsory for all workers, making Italy a test case for Europe.
COVID-19 patients in the country's medical facilities today are nearly "exclusively unvaccinated" individuals in all age groups" the weekly monitoring document on the crisis situation in Italy from Gimbe, the nation's center for evidence-based medicine, shows.
Any employee who fails to present a valid medical certificate will be placed on suspension without pay, but cannot be terminated from work, officials said after a cabinet signed the new measures.
Those who don't comply with the mandate and report to work regardless will be fined between 600 to 1,500 euros ($705 to $1,175). The penalty for employers will be 400-1000 euros, Reuters said.
A ruling on compulsory vaccination will partly depend on what percentage of the Italy's population can be persuaded to receive the shots voluntarily by October.
The government is looking to have 80% of its population over 12 years old fully inoculated by the end of September. As of Thursday, the current figure remains at just below 75%, latest government data disclose.
There have been some angry demonstrations around Italy in recent weeks about the increasing pressure to make vaccines a requirement, but most political parties and the main employers' union have supported the action, hoping it will keep the government from enforcing further lockdowns.
Based on latest figures, Italy has the second-highest COVID-19 fatality in Europe next to the United Kingdom, with more than 130,000 people dying of the virus since the pandemic broke out early last year.
