Feb. 4 (UPI) — Austria issued a nationwide COVID-19 vaccine mandate for adults on Friday, becoming the first European country to issue such an edict.
President Alexander Van der Bellen signed the legislation in the law, where those refusing to get the vaccine will be hit with an initial $680 fine when adherence checks start on March 15.
Fines can go as high as $4,000 while the law stays in effect, and it is expected to remain in place until Jan. 21, 2024.
Exemptions will be made for pregnant people and those who caught COVID-19 for 180 days from the date they received their first positive COVID-19 test.
While 76% of Austrians are fully vaccinated, new cases of the coronavirus skyrocketed in late December with the daily average of near cases almost doubling the past two weeks.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer admitted it has been difficult for lawmakers and health officials to convince the unvaccinated to get inoculated voluntarily.
“It is not a question of ideology, it is a question of convincing,” Nehammer said, according to The New York Times. “We can’t do and try enough to convince so that the unvaccinated get vaccinated.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said he will push for a general vaccine mandate in his country. In Italy, officials are requiring almost everyone age 50 and over to be vaccinated.