stronger bond, with a growing number of French citizens visiting, retiring, or establishing enterprises in the nation. France and Italy visitors are not required to test or quarantine upon their return, and it was recently announced that UK visitors are also not required to quarantine upon their return.
Travellers including vaccinated visitors, health tourists, and medical tourists from many of the EU countries can now visit Malta without being tested or quarantined. However, travelers from the United Kingdom who have not been vaccinated are still barred from entering. Malta is now testing the EU Digital COVID Certificate technology, which is expected to go live soon. Around 67 percent of the population have been vaccinated in Malta, which is the highest in the EU. Besides the challenges of vaccination, there is a developing political divide over the management of some of the hospitals in the country.
The Nationalist Party has promised to cancel the country’s contract to privatize the management of three hospitals as soon as possible. The National Audit Office had given the agreement a harsh review, finding conspiracy between Vitals Global Healthcare (the original concessionaire) and the government, which should have nullified the contract. Vitals transferred the concession to a subsidiary company, Steward Health Care, and it is probable that Steward will battle hard to keep it. They are opposing modifications which the present government prefers to make in the contract they took over from Vitals, and the US embassy in Malta is thought to be assisting Stewards as it is a US firm.
The facilities’ promises to become a significant medical tourism destination have yet to be realized. Malta is also attempting to entice digital nomads with a latest temporary residence scheme that allows non-EU candidates to reside and work on the island for a year, offering special visas.
