The vaccination center at the Nice Exhibition Center. – Lionel Urman / SIPA
Faced with unused doses of anti-Covid vaccine, due to a lack of candidates or due to unfulfilled appointments, local initiatives are multiplying, on the Côte d’Azur, Corsica, Marseille or elsewhere, to derogate from the official thresholds of the vaccine campaign against Covid-19.
In Nice, the vaccination having progressed well for the categories at risk, the metropolis decided to extend the vaccination to all the people registered on the platform set up in December, for Saturdays 1 and 8 May, on the sole condition that ‘they are over 18 years of age, without any co-morbidity being required.
In the Alpes-Maritimes, the thresholds are disappearing
Volunteers are contacted, in order of seniority of registration, favoring those who have ticked the boxes “work in a closed place” or “in contact with the public”. Hence the possibility for an 18-year-old registered at the beginning of January to benefit now from a dose of the vaccine from the Pfizer laboratory, it was explained on Saturday. According to the official vaccination schedule established by the government, those over 18 without comorbidities should still wait until June 15.
The commune of Mandelieu-La-Napoule, in the Alpes-Maritimes, will also open vaccination to all its adult inhabitants, without age limit, from Monday, announced the LR mayor, Sébastien Leroy, on social networks . This decision was made possible by a good organization of the vaccine campaign and a more regular allocation of doses from the Pfizer and Moderna laboratories, explained the town hall.
On Wednesday, it was the city of Cannes which had departed from the official thresholds, by announcing the opening of vaccination to all Cannes residents from the age of 40, without comorbidity. The town, led by David Lisnard (LR), had justified this expanded target by a new endowment of vaccines and by the decision to “postpone the administration of the second injection from 28 to 42 days”.
Vaccine doses saved at the end of the day
In Corsica or Marseille, it is the doses not used at the end of the day that are offered, in derogation of the official thresholds. In Bastia or in other Corsican localities, however, you must have registered beforehand to be able to benefit from these doses which could be thrown away.
In Marseille, at the Vélodrome stadium, on the other hand, it is sufficient to arrive around 4 p.m., approximately one hour before the closing of the vaccinodrome, to benefit, depending on the availability of a remaining dose – age, however, remaining the primary criterion for these candidates arrived unexpectedly.
According to the official calendar, the next segment of the population that can access vaccines is the 50-59 age group, from mid-May. Currently, only those aged 60 and over are eligible for Pfizer and Moderna vaccines today, with the bar dropping to 55 for AstraZeneca and Janssen.