Two walk-in Covid-19 vaccination points to be set up in Prague

Two Covid-19 vaccination points where people can be vaccinated without previous registration will be established in Prague at the Chodov shopping center and at the Hlavní nádraží train station, Health Minister Adam Vojtěch told reporters on Friday.

The sites, which will be set up within the next two weeks, are intended to make the vaccination process more accessible.

If these vaccination sites are successful, they will be opened in other regions as well, Vojtěch added.

Mobile vaccination teams have been set up and the two vaccination points in Prague are currently being prepared. Vojtěch said he hoped they will begin working within two weeks at the latest.

"The aim of the project is to reach people who have not yet registered for vaccination," Vojtěch said.

"Then they will [be able to enter] without any reservation or time slot and will be vaccinated immediately without any obstacles."

Representatives from the Czech Health Ministry, public health office, and Bulovka Teaching Hospital have already visited the location for the planned for the vaccination point at Hlavní nádraží, according to Czech national railway service spokesperson Radka Pistoriusová.

Marcela Hrdličková, Westfield Chodov manager, said a vaccination point is planned for the shopping mall by the end of summer. Additional shopping centers might join the vaccination campaign in autumn if there is enough demand, she added.

Along with two-dose vaccines against Covid-19, these new vaccination points will also get the single-dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson. If people choose a two-dose vaccine, they will have to come back for another dose at a later date.

The vaccination points for unregistered people are a pilot project, but if successful, the ministry would like to expand it to other regions as well, Vojtěch said.

He added that he was of the view that interest in vaccination at the large centers would fade away with time, and that they would end operation after the summer.

"This is why we are seeking some alternatives [...] we want to go closer to people and make the vaccination as accessible as possible without any barriers," he added.