Addressing lawmakers during the opening of parliament’s autumn session, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that Hungary's strategy for beating the coronavirus pandemic would depend on its vaccination campaign.
According to MTI, PM Orbán said vaccinations were the only effective way to tackle the virus, adding that after Hungary’s experiences gained after three waves of the epidemic it had become clear that restrictions and masks were not up to the job of defeating or even slowing down the virus. But if there are enough people who have been vaccinated, a normal life can be maintained, he said. Concerning booster jabs, he said that “having [the possibility] is better than not”, adding that people who receive a third jab would be “certainly better protected”. So far some 525,000 people have received a booster shot, he said, adding that 17 million doses are available this year. PM Orbán noted that the majority of Hungarians were vaccinated and protected from the virus and appealed to people who have not got vaccinated to do so. Hungary, he added, was prepared to respond to the fourth wave of the virus, noting that MPs have been asked to prolong the special legal order and the special measures related to Covid until the end of the year.