Imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates should be an “absolute last resort,” the World Health Organization’s top Europe official said on Tuesday, as a growing number of countries in Europe contemplate rolling out such measures. “Mandates around vaccination are an absolute last resort and only applicable when all feasible options to improve vaccination uptake have been exhausted,” WHO Europe director Hans Kluge told a press briefing. Kluge told reporters that “public confidence and public trust” in authorities and vaccination uptake must be taken into account before imposing vaccine requirements. “The effectiveness of mandates is very context specific,” Kluge said. “What is acceptable in one society and community may not be effective and acceptable in another.” “Ultimately, mandates should never contribute to increasing social inequalities in access to health and social services,” Kluge added. His remarks come shortly after Austria became the first country in Europe to make COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory, with the …