France suspended 320 healthcare workers over Macron's decision to make them vaccinated

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France suspended 320 healthcare workers over Macron's decision to make them vaccinated

In the southern City of Nice, 320 staff members were suspended on Wednesday and around another 100 are still having their status checked, the facility's media relations officer Isabelle Battarel told CNN.

A dozen resignations have been handed over to healthcare workers over the policy but Veran said there is no chaos stemming from the departures.

On 12 July Emmanuel Macron announced that all healthcare workers - including those in hospitals, care homes and home care nurses - must be fully vaccinated against Covid or risk suspension or dismissal from September 15.

There are about 2.7 million healthcare workers in the country. Macron's vaccine pass gamble may hold some clues Macron's move was part of a sweeping set of measures to encourage vaccinations after the rate of jabs slowed over the summer. Any adult without a health pass showing proof of their vaccination status or a recent negative test is unable to enter bars and cafes, or travel long distances by train. The majority of the healthcare workers suspended so far are support staff, Veran said, adding that a great number of suspensions are only temporary. Many of them decided to get vaccinated, seeing that the obligation was a reality, he said. Veran added that the most important thing is that all people in contact with elderly French people are vaccinated henceforth. Almost two-thirds of France's population is fully vaccinated, with another 10% having had one dose of a two-jab regimen. The country's coronavirus incidence was below 100 positive cases per 100,000 people for the first time since July 18 with little response from public health agencies, according to national statistics office.