The initial round of COVID-19 vaccinations are underway for prioritized Department of Defense (DOD) personnel serving within the U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) area of responsibility.
The DOD vaccination program began in Europe on Dec. 28 when the Moderna vaccine was administered to healthcare workers serving at three U.S. Army medical treatment facilities located in Bavaria. Three DOD medical facilities in the United Kingdom also began giving the vaccine to patients this week. Additional DOD medical facilities in Germany and the United Kingdom are scheduled to start inoculating personnel this week. Next week, DOD clinics in Italy, Spain, Belgium and Portugal are slated to receive their first shipment of the vaccine.
This initial phase of vaccine distribution within the USEUCOM region is an important first step toward DOD’s overall plan that encourages all personnel to get vaccinated.
“Getting everybody immunized allows us to move back to, essentially, a sense of normalcy in terms of how we interact with each other,” said Brig. Gen. Mark Thompson, Commanding General of Regional Health Command Europe.
Thompson said the initial phase will take about a month to complete because of the 28-day time period between first dose and second dose of the Moderna vaccine.
For more information, see USEUCOM’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution webpage: https://www.eucom.mil/current-focus-areas/covid-19-vaccine-distribution/
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About USEUCOM
U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) is responsible for U.S. military operations across Europe, portions of Asia and the Middle East, the Arctic and Atlantic Ocean. USEUCOM is comprised of more than 64,000 military and civilian personnel and works closely with NATO Allies and partners. The command is one of two U.S. forward-deployed geographic combatant commands headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. For more information about USEUCOM, visit https://www.eucom.mil.
