On Tuesday 5 July 2022, an ad hoc group of experts, set up by the Luxembourg Government to advise on the medical reasons in favour of mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations, presented its opinion on this matter.
This ad hoc group is composed of the following experts: Dr Vic Arendt, infectiologist at the National Infectious Disease Department of the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL); Prof Dr Claude P Muller, Professor at Saarland University and the University of Trier, and expert in virology and immunology at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH); Dr Gérard Schockmel, specialist in infectious diseases at Hôpitaux Robert Schuman and expert at the European Medicines Agency (EMA); Dr Thérèse Staub, chief medical officer at the CHL's National Infectious Disease Department and President of the Superior Council of Infectious Diseases; Prof Dr Paul Wilmes, Professor of Systems Ecology at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB) and the Department of Life Sciences and Medicine, Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine at the University of Luxembourg.
The Luxembourg Government had instructed this working group to draw up an additional opinion to that of 14 January 2022, from a medical and scientific point of view, on the usefulness of establishing an obligation to get vaccinated against COVID-19 in the context of the evolution of the pandemic situation against the backdrop of the spread of the Omicron variant, as well as the relatively high degree of uncertainty about the evolution of the pandemic over the coming months (autumn / winter) and taking into account the state of progress of the vaccination campaign.
The opinion will appear for discussion on the agenda of the Government Council on the morning of Friday 8 July 2022. The government has also submitted a proposal to the Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg's parliament) to make a government statement, followed by a debate, on this additional opinion of the ad hoc group of experts on this subject on Friday afternoon.
At a press conference on Tuesday morning, the experts explained that the main aim of a potential COVID-19 vaccination obligation was to avoid overwhelming the healthcare system, particularly intensive care units in hospitals. They recalled that 98% of people in Luxembourg who had died from COVID-19 were aged 50 or over and more than 80% of patients in intensive care with the virus also fell into this age group. And yet, 13.5% of this vulnerable group (i.e. 30,459 people) had still not been vaccinated.
The experts also noted that vaccination coverage remained too low among healthcare personnel, i.e. people who are in regular contact with these vulnerable groups.
Nevertheless, taking into account the fact that vaccination proved less effective four to five months after the last dose (plus the evolution of different variants), the ad hoc group of experts ultimately decided NOT to recommend obligatory vaccination against COVID-19 in this sector. Instead, the experts recommended the implementation of adapted sanitary measures and the obligation to reveal one's vaccination status, among other measures, to protect the most vulnerable and prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed, particularly with the potential threat of a new wave in autumn.
The ad hoc group of experts also recommended raising awareness among general practitioners (GPs), who should try to convince vulnerable patients to get vaccinated. Should they fail to convince them, however, the group did not see to what extent an obligation to get vaccinated would increase the vaccination rate.
Moreover, the experts recommended "extended responsibility", i.e. people refusing vaccination, particularly care home residents, should sign a document recognising that, since it is not possible to protect non-vaccinated people permanently against infection, the consequences will be their responsibility and / or that of their relatives. Similarly, people working in the healthcare sector should sign a document certifying that they have been informed of the consequences of a refusal to be vaccinated for their own health and that of the beneficiaries of their care.
Independently of the introduction of a vaccination obligation, the group stressed the need to redouble efforts to increase vaccination coverage in the eligible population.
