Since the coronavirus press conference on September 14, the Netherlands has seen a “striking” increase in the number of vaccination appointments, the GGD reports.
Tuesday saw the Dutch government officially introduce the highly controversial coronavirus certificate system: from September 25, members of the public will have to present either proof of vaccination, proof of recent recovery from COVID-19, or a negative test result.
While Health Minister Hugo de Jonge was adamant the new rule wasn’t designed to force vaccination, he said he hoped it would encourage more people to get the jab, as those who remained unvaccinated would face more obstacles in their day to day lives.
The rule is yet to come into effect, but since the news was leaked over the weekend the GGD has reported a “striking” increase in the number of new vaccination appointments.
Last week, an average of 8.000 appointments were scheduled every day, however, on Wednesday - less than 24 hours after the press conference - this figure had almost doubled. Furthermore, this week has also seen a notable increase in the number of vaccines administered: on Tuesday, 19.227 vaccinations took place, compared to 17.969 on Monday.
"We are not certain about the cause, but the timing is striking," explained a spokesperson for the GGD. The National Institute for Public Health and Environment (RIVM) has emphasised that, in order for this increase to be labelled a structural trend, figures will need to (continue to) rise for at least a full week.