Some 4,000 people were already vaccinated by the morning of April 25 in the three-day "Vaccination Marathon" in Timisoara, western Romania, where the authorities prepared 10,000 Pfizer doses for the event. The 30 vaccination points were open 24 hours a day for those willing to participate, according to Tion.ro.

The event will be replicated on May 7-9 in Bucharest, when people will have the opportunity to get the first dose of the vaccine with no prior scheduling.

"For the first time, we obtained approval for the vaccination to be done with the ID card only, on the spot, without scheduling in advance on the online platform. There are over 500 volunteers who have done this action, and we hope this will help us get closer to the haven of normalcy and freedom," said Dr. Dorel Sandesc, the head of the ATI department within the Timisoara County Hospital.

"On May 7-9, there will be a vaccination marathon in Bucharest. Most likely, the locations will be two: the Palace Hall and the National Library [both locations in downtown Bucharest, not far from each other]. We must combine this medical event with a social and cultural one. Only the identity card will be needed," commented Valeriu Gheorghita, the head of the national vaccination campaign, speaking of the event prepared for the capital city, according to local Adevarul.

Close to 3 million Romanians have been vaccinated so far, of whom 1.77 million with both doses and 1.21 million with just the first dose, according to official statistics. The current vaccination pace is close to 90,000 people per day.

However, a study carried out by private medical services provider MedLife shows that vaccination intention is relatively low among those who haven't already got vaccinated.

andrei@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Virgil Simonescu)