ATHENS – Still more than a million short of the goal needed to slow the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 6 million people in Greece's population of 10.74 million have been vaccinated.

Secretary for Primary Healthcare Marios Themistokleous told reporters at an Aug. 30 regular briefing that 54.5 percent of the general population (5,715,000 people) or 63.6 percent of adults are fully protected, said the state-run Athens-Macedonia News Agency (ANA-MPA.)

At least 70 percent of the population of 10.74 million need to be fully vaccinated with two shots or most versions or the single-shot Johnson & Johnson from the United States to slow the pandemic.

But at least one member of the New Democracy government's advisory panel of doctors and scientists said the number could be as high as 80-85 with the contagious Delta Variant from India the dominant strain, targeting the unvaccinated.

He said the highest vaccination rates are among those aged 55 to 80+ ;ollowed by those 50-54 (70.7percent), 45-49 (67.7 percent), and 40-44 (62.9 percent.) Age groups 25-39 rates range between 52.9 percent and 55.7 percent, while the 18-24 ones are at 42.7 percent. The younger groups, 15-17 and 12-14, stand at 16.5 percent and 6.5 percent.

In addition, at-home vaccinations have reached 7,330 appointments through doctors and of these, 5,500 have already been completed, the report said.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has made shots mandatory only for health workers but said that could be extended to other public workers or professional groups or the whole population if the pandemic still keeps surging.