Italy surpasses 1 million coronavirus vaccinations: PM

Italy has administered more than a million coronavirus vaccines, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Friday shortly after the announcement of further anti-Covid-19 restrictions in the country. 

“A heartfelt thanks to citizens and our national health service for the extraordinary response,” wrote Conte on Facebook. 

“Italy is first in the EU for the number of people vaccinated. An encouraging statistic,” he wrote.

Earlier Friday, Health Minister Roberto Speranza signed a new decree that put three regions under a near lockdown. Considered “red” zones, only supermarkets, pharmacies and other stores selling basic necessities are allowed to open.

Other regions are considered “orange” or “yellow” zones, which carry lesser restrictions. 

On Thursday, a report from the government’s coronavirus crisis commission indicated that Italy had administered 903,883 vaccines, versus Germany at 758,093 and Spain with 581,638.