Germany readies exhibition halls, mobile teams for COVID-19 vaccination

FILE PHOTO: Customers wait in line after the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown has been eased around the country and companies open some of its stores, in Munich, Germany, May 12, 2020. REUTERS/Andreas Gebert/File Photo

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany is scouting trade fair halls and airport terminals to use as potential mass vaccination centres, as it draws up plans to inoculate the nation as soon as the first coronavirus shot gains European approval, state health officials told Reuters.

Berlin expects the first COVID-19 vaccines to be available in early 2021 and has given the country's 16 states a Nov. 10 deadline to detail the addresses of 60 facilities that could serve as delivery centres for manufacturers.