A group of about 135 GPs in East Brabant wants to give the corona vaccines widely to ensure people over the age of 60 get their third vaccination more quickly.

“You want to get over-60s as soon as possible. They can already make an appointment, but they often don’t get their turn until mid-January,” says GP Gert Jan van Holten. So Van Holten and about 134 colleagues from East Brabant came up with a concrete plan with the regional GGD.

According to Van Holten, there are already concrete plans to distribute GGD fifteen bottles of Moderna to every doctor in East Brabant who wanted to participate. Van Holten: “You get about twenty doses out of a vial, so that each doctor can put 300 syringes.”

The Ministry has control

However, the promotion campaign is run by the Ministry of Health. In response, the ministry said that vaccinations should be done primarily through GGDs, because otherwise “problems may arise with the issuance of Corona entry tickets and Corona digital certificates. Obtaining a GGD booster once the year is over is the fastest and most cost-effective.” the easiest. You are registered correctly immediately.”

The ministry also states that “general practitioners who have already entered into agreements in their area with the GGD to strengthen their practice, may do so, provided they guarantee with their GGD that the persons have been properly registered within two weeks in accordance with national guidelines.” . This means, according to the ministry, that the Brabant Doctors’ initiative can in principle continue.

Disappointed doctors

At first, it seemed that it would never be possible for GPs to come up with these kinds of initiatives. However, the ministry issued a response in the evening which showed that vaccination can still be done “provided that the registration arrangement is arranged”.

The National Association of General Practitioners (LHV) initially received calls from frustrated doctors today and announced that the national path remains preferred. LHV President Miriam van Veeld: “It is great that a number of GPs have taken so many initiatives and arranged this with their GGD. But now we have to choose the path and place where the booster vaccination can be done most effectively and this is in GGD GHOR Netherlands. A national approach to GGDs can accelerate booster vaccination.”