UVZ Allowed to Take into Account Vaccinations When Introducing Anti-COVID Measures

Bratislava, July 25 (TASR) – In the event of a threat to public health, the Public Health Office (UVZ) will be able to take into account a digital COVID pass when creating anti-pandemic measures as Parliament approved on Sunday the draft law on the protection, support and development of public health, TASR learnt on the same day.

A total of 77 of the 133 lawmakers present were in favour, 55 were against and one did not vote.

The COVID pass confirms that a person has been vaccinated against COVID-19, tested negative or recovered from the disease.

The opposition Smer-SD insists on the unconstitutionality of the amendment and party leader Robert Fico called on President Zuzana Caputova to veto the bill. Fico also stated that MPs will approach the Constitutional Court concerning this issue at the beginning of the coming week.

According to Fico, after the adoption of the amendment, chaos will begin in Slovakia, because the law does not say where the measures will apply. In the adopted law, he sees an intention to force people to be vaccinated. The Smer-SD head reiterated that Parliamentary Chair Boris Kollar (We Are Family) and the coalition made a deal worth a billion euros in the agreement on reimbursement of COVID-19 tests.

The extra-parliamentary Voice-SD will support the submission of the “vaccination” amendment to the Constitutional Court announced by the opposition Smer-SD party.

“The Government has today an approved law that allows vaccination to be required from anyone who makes a move,” Voice-SD leader Peter Pellegrini said after the law was approved, which his party considers to be discriminatory. He rejects dividing people into vaccinated and non-vaccinated.

Smer-SD’s motion at the Constitutional court will also be supported by Independent MPs around Tomas Taraba and Jan Podmanicky.