The Balearic government has stated that it will not change its vaccination programme plans and follow what other regions are doing.
The government is specifically ruling out allowing businesses to arrange vaccination of employees. The Andalusian government will be giving authorisation for this, while the process has already started in Valencia. El Corte Inglés and Mercadona are among companies vaccinating employees - an estimated 50,000 in all.
The Spanish government at first refused to allow this but it then left the decision in the hands of regional administrations. As far as the Balearic government is concerned, it will be sticking to a vaccination campaign that is "in accordance with the established criteria". The government notes that almost half the population of the Balearics has now had at least one dose of vaccine.
It isn't the case that companies have been acquiring their own vaccines. In Valencia, the company programmes are following age group guidelines and the vaccines are being supplied by the regional health ministry. The main difference is that vaccinations are being done privately.
Hoteliers in the Balearics offered the government the possibility of vaccinating their employees as a way of facilitating and speeding up the process, but this was declined.
The director of IB-Salut, Juli Fuster, has meanwhile said that the Balearics are "open" to the possibility of vaccinating tourists from other regions of Spain or from abroad, albeit there are no plans for this and it would be wholly dependent on the number of vaccines being delivered. Vaccination of seasonal workers who have come to the Balearics for the summer is "guaranteed".
In Valencia, people from other regions or from EU countries who will be staying in the Valencia region for more than a month are being vaccinated. The government doesn't want to lose second residence tourism this summer. The national ministry of health, it is hoped, will be adapting the number of vaccines supplied to Valencia in taking account of the fact that the region is a tourist destination with a high movement of people.
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Unbelievably stupid. Green light looming?? Need as many people vaccinated as possible, so turn down extra help. It beggars belief. Surely worthy of MDB comment piece????