Europe, Covid Vaccines, And Undocumented Migrants

San Jose (map), Hayden120 (retouch), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In the United States, 48.4% of the population has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19. An additional 7.6% of the population has received one of two vaccine doses.

In Europe, WaPo reports, only 44% of adults have been fully vaccinated, with another 20% of adults receiving one of two vaccine doses.

Europe would like to increase its vaccination rates, but it’s overlooking one substantial segment of its population: undocumented migrants.

Undocumented migrants are eligible for vaccines in the United States. (See, e.g. here.)

In Europe, the E.U. has recommended vaccinating immigrants, WaPo reports. But “vaccination policies and procedures vary widely across Europe.” The Netherlands, Portugal, and Belgium have all taken steps to vaccinate migrants. In other countries, hurdles (and distrust) abound:

“In the past, countries including the United Kingdom have charged immigrants for health services that citizens receive free. Other countries have turned away those without documents. In some places, health authorities share information with immigration services.”

-KitJ