PALMA – People who are unregistered residents in Spain are eligible for a vaccine according to the Spanish national vaccination strategy. This also applies to foreigners.
According to Diario de Mallorca, the Balearic region has the biggest number of people living there but not officially registered. This accounts for about 200,000 people and includes the islands of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera.
The regional government is currently awaiting instructions from the national Ministry of Health. As a result, it is should send more vaccines to the islands based on the amended census.
Unregistered residents and displaced workers
These 200,000 people who are not registered in the archipelago mainly belong to the group classified as ‘displaced workers’. They are from other autonomous regions but reside on the islands during the tourist season. Also, they could be ‘foreigners who usually have private insurance but are unregistered residents within the public health system ‘.
In either case, to receive the vaccine, these people must go to IB-Salut (Balearic Health Service). There, they must register to participate in the vaccination plan.
On March 6, IB-Salut announced that it was launching a telephone line to serve this large group. This number “can resolve incidents and administrative doubts and facilitate access to the vaccine for people living in the archipelago who, for one reason or another, do not have a health card,” explains the Balearic Health Service.
Capacity to vaccinate everyone on the islands
Manuel Palomino, director of the regional health service on the islands, showed confidence in the vaccination capacity of his region. He stated that he has the capacity to vaccinate everyone on the islands as long as enough vaccines arrive. To this end, “the autonomous communities will require to share information. For example, we will need to know if the people who come to work in our hotels during the summer have already received a dose and when they will receive the next, ”Palomino said at a press conference.
Mainly Germans and Brits
Palomino indicated that they have been busy for more than three weeks, together with various ministries, to map out this group of foreigners, mainly Germans and Brits, who live on the islands without having registered there and who are often privately insured.
