Vienna In Austria, one of the most controversial laws of recent years has almost been passed: the country is expected to introduce mandatory vaccinations for all residents over the age of 18 on February 3rd.
The votes of the two governing parties, the ÖVP and the Greens, for which there is no parliamentary group pressure, would be enough to pass the parliamentary session on Thursday. In addition, the government of Chancellor Karl Nehammer tried to get the approval of parts of the opposition in order to support the heatedly discussed project as broadly as possible.
With the right-wing populist FPÖ, the government has no chance with this wish; Party leader Herbert Kickl in particular has made a name for himself in the past as a hardened critic of various protective measures against the pandemic.
The obligation to vaccinate is the devil for him. During the debate, he said he was “appalled, stunned and shocked” by the law. However, the SPÖ and the left-liberal party Neos are mostly in favor of the new regulation.
The ÖVP has also fulfilled a wish of the Social Democrats: There will be a financial incentive system in Austria to get the population to voluntarily get vaccinated. The motivation injection, for which the amount of 1.4 billion euros is reserved, will first of all include a vaccination fleet.
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There are vouchers worth 500 euros to be won, which can be redeemed in restaurants, shops, hotels or cultural institutions. The government is also linking compulsory vaccination to a kind of economic stimulus package.
The communities should also benefit
Secondly, there will also be financial concessions for communities. If the municipalities reach certain vaccination quotas among the residents, they will receive graduated amounts. As an example, Nehammer named a municipality with 3,000 inhabitants.
In Austria, there are many demonstrations due to the planned compulsory vaccination.
(Photo: imago images/Michael Kristen)
If she manages a vaccination rate of 80 percent, she gets 30,000 euros; at 90 percent, 120,000 euros are transferred. According to the Chancellor, the money could be invested in kindergartens, playgrounds or other municipal tasks.
So there is something for almost everyone in the vaccination package: not only help for the economy, but also a small social program. The effort to get as many sections of the population on board as possible is obvious.
In the past few weeks, SPÖ leader Pamela-Rendi Wagner in particular had urged not only to put pressure on the population, but also to lure them with incentives. The opposition has repeatedly accused the government of not doing enough to convince people of the need for vaccination. Former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who had prematurely declared the end of the pandemic, was also criticized.
It is disputed among economists whether financial vaccination incentives are of any use at all or possibly even harmful. The pandemic may last for many more months, so that from a government perspective, several rounds of vaccinations will still be necessary. In the worst case, the public sector has spent a lot of money.
In addition, many opponents of vaccination do not behave like people who want to maximize their income. Rather, they are against vaccination for fundamental reasons.
Even the discussion about the sense of financial incentives shows how many problems arise when vaccination is compulsory. It is necessary to clarify complex legal, ethical and economic issues; The concrete implementation of compulsory vaccination is also challenging.
Many people are against compulsory vaccination
In the past few weeks, countless doubters had spoken out in Austria. Their basic tenor was: The measure is too expensive and currently not necessary.
Scientists complained, for example, that the vaccination for the omicron wave came too late. In addition, it is not clear whether regular booster vaccinations for the entire population are recommended by science at all.
The judges are also startled. They fear an avalanche of administrative penal proceedings. Police unionists finally grumbled because, at least in the initial phase from March 15, the police are supposed to check the vaccination status of the population in random samples.
Employee representatives complain that the police are being burdened with more and more tasks during the pandemic. Unvaccinated people who are caught face a fine of 600 euros, with a maximum of four sanctions per year.
More: This is how the omicron wave hits companies and infrastructure