PARIS, Feb 9 (Reuters) – The French government on Tuesday asked a private hospital to explain if it had helped any on its board of governors jump the queue for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Health Minister Olivier Veran said he would contact the management of the American Hospital of Paris to find out if individuals had been vaccinated before it was their turn, as was alleged in a report by France Info radio.
“I deplore it if it is true,” the minister told France Info. “I will not accept that there are any free passes.”
The hospital said in a statement that the vaccine was offered, starting on Jan. 4, to all people working in the hospital, including governors, who were aged over 50 or had a grave underlying health condition.
The hospital gave no further details on how many people took up the vaccine shots and what role they played at the hospital.
Government rules in force on Jan. 4 stated that to be eligible for the vaccine, a recipient had to be a nursing home resident or a frontline healthcare worker over 50 years old.
From Jan. 18, the government widened eligibility for vaccination to include people over 75 and those under 75 with serious underlying health conditions.
A representative for the hospital declined to comment on whether any of its governors had received the vaccine or under what criteria they would have qualified, citing medical confidentiality.
The American Hospital of Paris is located in the French capital’s upscale Neuilly suburb. Its website lists a total of 29 governors, among them bankers, lawyers, senior surgeons and business executives. Some are listed as retired, while others are in their 40s or 50s.
The list includes Arnaud Lagardere, a 59-year-old multi-millionaire who is chief executive of the Lagardere holding company. A spokesman for Lagardere did not respond to a text message seeking comment.
France’s vaccination programme has so far delivered shots to more than 2 million people.
But many more have had their appointments cancelled or postponed, after manufacturers said production problems forced them to reduce deliveries, and some health authorities have suspended making new vaccination appointments. (Reporting by Richard Lough; Additional reporting by Gwenaelle Barzic; Editing by Alex Richardson)
