Germany to prioritize vaccinations in care homes

Updated: Nov 14, 2020 / 06:57 AM CST

A police officer patrols in front of the Brandeburger Tor at the Pariser Platz with the embassies of France and the United States in Berlin, Germany, Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020. Due to the measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and the COVID-19 disease, the wearing of face masks at the tourist hotspot in the German capital is mandatory and is controlled by the police in the region (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel says nursing home workers and the people they are caring for will be among the first to get access to coronavirus vaccines.

Merkel said Saturday in her weekly video address that staff and residents of nursing homes will “receive priority” as soon as a vaccine is available.

Almost 1 million people in Germany live in nursing and care homes. The country is seeking to buy 100 million doses of a vaccine being developed by German pharmaceutical company BioNTech and U.S. partner Pfizer.

Germany’s disease control agency reported a further 22,461 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to Saturday, as well as 178 additional deaths. Since the start of the pandemic, Germany has recorded 773,556 confirmed cases and 12,378 deaths.