French parliament passes law mandating vaccinations for health workers
With the number of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations on the rise, the French parliament approved a law early Monday that make COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory for all health workers and creates a special pass for people to use showing they are vaccinated, had a recent negative COVID-19 test, or just got over the coronavirus.
This pass will be necessary in order to board planes and trains and enter restaurants and some other public places, The Associated Press reports. Only adults will need the pass for now, but beginning Sept. 30, everyone 12 and older must have one. Health care workers have to start getting vaccinated by Sept. 15, or they could be suspended from their jobs.
In France, more than 111,000 people have died of COVID-19, and President Emmanuel Macron says these new measures have to be put in place to protect the vulnerable. Lawmakers first started working on the bill six days ago, and quickly reached a compromise version that was passed by the Senate on Sunday night and National Assembly early Monday, AP reports.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
On Saturday, about 160,000 protesters demonstrated against the measures, accusing the government of overreach. There are now 20,000 new coronavirus infections being reported daily, up from a few thousand a day earlier this month, and Macron spoke out against the far-right politicians pushing anti-vaccine sentiment. "What is your freedom worth if you say to me, 'I don't want to be vaccinated,' but tomorrow you infect your father, your mother, or myself?" Macron said. The protesters are "free to express themselves in a calm and respectful manner," he added, but they can't wish the virus away.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
6 charming homes for the whimsical
Feature Featuring a 1924 factory-turned-loft in San Francisco and a home with custom murals in Yucca Valley
By The Week Staff Published
-
Big tech's big pivot
Opinion How Silicon Valley's corporate titans learned to love Trump
By Theunis Bates Published
-
Stacy Horn's 6 favorite works that explore the spectrum of evil
Feature The author recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Anthony Doerr, and more
By The Week US Published
-
80 dead in Colombia amid uptick in guerrilla fighting
Speed Read This was the country's deadliest wave of violence since the peace accords set by President Gustavo Petro in 2016
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Gaza ceasefire, hostage deal on track to start by Monday
Speed Read A deal between Israel and Hamas to release hostages and begin a ceasefire was officially signed by representatives in Doha
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine captures first North Korean soldiers
Speed Read Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted videos of the men captured in Russia's Kursk region
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Lebanon selects president after 2-year impasse
Speed Read The country's parliament elected Gen. Joseph Aoun as its next leader
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US accuses Sudan rebels of genocide, sanctions chief
Speed Read Sudan has been engaged in a bloody civil war that erupted in 2023
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine goes on offense in Russia's Kursk region
Speed Read A top adviser to President Zelenskyy said "the Russians are getting what they deserve"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine cuts off Russian gas pipeline to Europe
Speed Read Ukraine has halted the transport of Russian gas to Europe after a key deal with Moscow expired
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Top Russian general killed in Moscow blast
Speed Read A remote-triggered bomb killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published