Towards a new tightening of screws? As the 5th wave of the epidemic arrives in a “brilliant” way, according to government spokesman Gabriel Attal, the government is taking the lead. New measures should thus be announced Thursday, during a press conference. The situation in hospitals is particularly scrutinized by the executive. The European Union, for its part, is urging member states to speed up vaccination as the end-of-year holidays approach.
- In France, the situation of hospitals is “the sinews of war”
“Our epidemic situation is deteriorating,” warned the government spokesman on Wednesday after the Council of Ministers. “Beyond [la] wave of contaminations, it is the situation in the hospital which is and which remains the sinews of war”, added Gabriel Attal. The number of contaminations crossed the bar of 30,000 cases on Tuesday. More than 8,500 people are currently hospitalized, including 1,455 in critical care.
Faced with this situation, the executive intends at all costs “to protect the end-of-year celebrations” and avoid “returning to gauge measures, even less closures, curfews or confinement”, declared Gabriel Attal. Three avenues are thus being studied, according to the government: the “strengthening of barrier measures and the wearing of masks, indoors and outdoors”, the “strengthening of the health pass to put more constraint on the non-vaccinated than on the vaccinated” and “the acceleration of the vaccination campaign.” These options will be presented this Wednesday afternoon to parliamentarians and local elected officials. The measures adopted will be announced Thursday, at midday, by the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran.
- The European Union urges States to speed up vaccination
A warning signal. The European Union disease agency called on member states on Wednesday to take “urgent” measures in the face of the epidemic rebound affecting Europe. As the risk of an even worse health situation in December and January looms, the director of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Andrea Ammon, has recommended a dose of so-called “booster” vaccine. for adults over the age of 18. For the booster dose, priority should be given to those over 40 and to the most vulnerable people, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday.
The EU also calls for increasing the vaccination coverage of European countries. The general level of vaccination in the EU, still below 70% of the total population, “leaves a wide vaccination gap which cannot be closed quickly and gives a large space for the virus to spread”, underlines the ECDC. . “We must increase vaccinations to control the pandemic,” tweeted Ursula von der Leyen.
Because of the Delta variant, vaccines only protect 40% of transmission
- In the Vosges, a family decimated by the Covid
“Here, it’s amazement.” In Courcelles-sous-Châtenois, a village in the Vosges of barely a hundred inhabitants, the emotion is strong, after the death of three people from the same family of Covid-19. In a few days, Dominique Py, 48 years old, Odile Py, 82 years old and Robert Py, 89 years old, thus died, reports the daily Morning Vosges. None of them were vaccinated. “Get vaccinated!”, launched as a warning cry Ouafa Py, daughter-in-law of Robert and Odile Py and sister-in-law of Dominique.
- In Italy, the “corona parties” worry the authorities
“We meet to drink beers at someone’s house with a Covid-19 positive host. The objective is to contaminate ourselves, because we are sure that we will heal quickly and we will be able to obtain the Green Pass. [en Italie, l’équivalent du passe sanitaire, ndlr].” This is how the daily newspaper Corriere della Sera describes, Quoted by International mail, the parties indulged in by Italians in South Tyrol. “Criminal acts”, according to Arno Kompatscher, president of the province of South Tyrol. “It is not confirmed yet, but it seems that some young people who are in intensive care have participated in these parties,” he added. The region, with a German-speaking majority, is one of the provinces with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country.
- Because of the Delta, vaccines 40% effective against Covid
“Vaccines save lives, but they do not completely prevent the transmission of Covid-19.” So spoke on Wednesday the head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. According to the World Health Organization, the highly contagious Delta variant has reduced the effectiveness of various vaccines against disease transmission by 40%. A reason to continue to wear the mask and apply barrier gestures, according to the director of the WHO. “In many countries and communities, we fear that there is this misconception that vaccines have ended the pandemic, and that people who are vaccinated no longer need to take precautions,” he said. warned Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
- In Slovakia, a two-week partial confinement
New restrictions to deal with a strong resumption of the epidemic. In Slovakia, restaurants and non-essential shops will close from Thursday. The government has also confirmed a confinement for the next two weeks. Residents will not be allowed to go out at night, between one and five in the morning. Schools will remain open.
“We want them to remain open, said Economy Minister Richard Sulik. We are also for tests in schools to be compulsory.” Slovakia has one of the highest contamination rates in the world. Over the past seven days, the country has recorded 944 new cases per 100,000 people. Vaccination coverage is low: 45.7% of the Slovak population is fully vaccinated.