Military hospitals in Romania will offer COVID-19 vaccines without appointment starting May 4, as part of a one-week pilot project aimed at speeding up the country's vaccination campaign. Vaccinations at these centers will be done 24 hours a day.

Defense minister Nicolae Ciuca made the announcement at the local news channel Digi24.

"Starting next week, on May 4, we will try a one-week pilot project, so that vaccination centers at military hospitals can operate around the clock and citizens can be vaccinated without booking an appointment on the online platform," the minister said.

According to him, the program will include all 11 military hospitals in the country.

To accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, the Romanian authorities have been introducing extra options for those who want to get a vaccine, such as mobile and drive-through vaccination centers or "vaccination marathons" in big cities. Online appointments on the government-run platform Programare.vaccinare-covid.gov.ro are also available, and family doctors are also set to join the program from May 4.

The first drive-through vaccine center in Bucharest opened on Thursday, April 29. Moreover, "vaccination marathons" will be organized in the capital city on May 7-9, and in Cluj-Napoca, Targu Mures, and Iasi between May 14 and May 16.

Officials also announced that the online platform was updated to allow users to book an appointment for the second dose in a different location to their first dose. Also, users can search for centers by the type of vaccine administered.

Companies in Romania also started vaccinating their employees against COVID-19. According to Andrei Baciu, the vice president of the national vaccination campaign, 79 companies have joined the campaign so far, and 16 of them are active in the HoReCa sector. Almost 5,000 people have received a vaccine in temporary centers set up by employers.

Slightly over 3.2 million people received a COVID-19 vaccine in Romania by April 28: 1.32 million people received the first dose, and 1.88 million got both doses.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Gov.ro)