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Ireland should maintain current Level 5 restrictions against Covid-19 until each county reaches zero cases, according to a group of scientists advocating for elimination of the virus.
This approach would capitalize on school closings over the Christmas period and thus reduce cases even faster, the Independent Scientific Advocacy Group (ISAG) said.
According to the group, Ireland should “aggressively suppress” transmission of the virus and reduce cases to zero as part of an explicit “no active cases” policy in the community.
“The result will be a completely open economy and a normal social life, without significant restrictions within the country.”
In a document outlining their strategy to “rid” the country of Covid-19, the group says Ireland’s current approach leaves us vulnerable to a series of new waves of infections next year, with the resulting lockdowns, before vaccine-based immunity becomes a reality. by the end of 2021.
Ireland should learn from the examples of other countries that have successfully eliminated the virus and resumed their normal lives, he said.
Among the proposed measures are a mandatory 14-day quarantine for international travelers, restriction of movement between counties within Ireland, additional resources for public health physicians tracking cases, and a greater emphasis on ventilation of buildings.
The border counties would be treated “like any other county” with traffic between the north and the Republic regulated by the Covid-19 checkpoints.
Rapid isolation of carriers and their close contacts can only be achieved when the number of cases is less than 100 per day; currently there are around 300, the groups say.
“Every case that comes up must be treated like murder: quick and thorough contact tracing and testing to nip the shoots in the bud.”
The measures would be deployed and lifted geographically, so that if a county reached a low number of cases, the restrictions would be lifted there so that “the efforts and sacrifices are immediately rewarded by the county.”
Adjacent counties with low caseloads could form a “bubble” with free travel between them.
When outbreaks occur, “certain economic sectors” would shut down first to help eliminate cases; High-risk sectors would include “large portions of the service economy.”
ISAG said its plan would work even in the absence of meaningful cooperation between the Republic and the North.
Government ministers have explicitly ruled out the group’s recommended “Covid zero” approach.
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