Italy in code orange, red for Spain, Holland and France

About 7 months have passed since the outbreak of the pandemic, but in the end the EU governments reached an agreement to create the first common map on the epidemiological situation of Covid-19. An important map to have an overview of the trend of infections based on common criteria and not on national assessments that in the summer generated a lot of controversy between the different Member States. But the map could be even more important if it were used to “avoid fragmentation and disruption” of travel within the single European market “and to increase transparency and predictability for citizens and businesses”, as stated in the Council of Member States website.

The map

“The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted our daily lives in various ways, he says. Michael roth, Deputy Minister for Europe of Germany, leading the semester of the Council presidency – Due to travel restrictions, today it is difficult for some of our citizens to go to work, to university or to visit loved ones. It is our common duty to ensure the coordination of all measures that may affect free movement and provide our citizens with all the information they need to decide their trip. The “coordination” is based on a map of the epidemiological situation in the EU that is based on a number of criteria:

Each country should provide these data to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (Ecdc). The Council’s request is to provide this data both at the national and regional levels: the objective, in fact, is to have a weekly map that indicates the epidemiological situation region by region. Each area will be marked with a color:

• green if the rate of cases registered in the last 14 days is less than 25 and the rate of positive results is less than 4%
• orange if the rate of cases registered in the last 14 days is less than 50, but the rate of positive tests is equal to or greater than 4%, or if the rate of cases registered in the last 14 days is between 25 and 150 and the positive result rate is less than 4%
• red if the rate of cases registered in the last 14 days is equal to or greater than 50 and the rate of positive tests is equal to or greater than 4%, or if the rate of cases registered in the last 14 days is greater than 150
• gray if not enough information is available or if the test rate is less than 300

By these criteria, Italy would currently be among the few EU countries that have the orange code along with Germany, Sweden, Finland, Greece and Portugal. The rest of the member states would have a red code, and the Netherlands, France and Spain would have the highest rate of positive tests among the main countries. No member state should have the gray code at this time, even if Poland and Bulgaria have a testing fee of just over 300 (the minimum allowed) based on the data available to the ECDC to date. The merit of these criteria is to give weight to the percentage values, especially to the relationship between the number of positives and the number of tests carried out: for example, Hungary could fall under the orange code for cases declared per 100 thousand inhabitants, but has a positive rate. of tests by 9%, among the highest in the EU and more than double the limit allowed for not being marked with the red code.

Travel between regions

On the basis of this map, the Member States have committed to coordinating according to common rules and, therefore, avoiding discrimination such as that, for example, denounced by Italy against Austria at the beginning of the summer, when the government in Vienna had blocked the accesses to our country favoring instead a kind of tourist “corridor” towards Croatia. In accordance with these common rules, the Council note notes, “Member States should not restrict the free movement of people traveling to or from green areas”. When considering the possibility of applying restrictions in other cases, “they must respect the differences in the epidemiological situation between the orange and red zones and act in a proportional manner, as well as take into account the epidemiological situation in their own territory.”

In principle, Member States should not reject the entry of travelers from other Member States. Member States that deem it necessary to introduce restrictions could require travelers from non-green areas to quarantine and / or undergo a test after arrival. Member States may offer the possibility of replacing this test with one carried out before arrival.

Countries “could also require people entering their territory to submit a passenger tracking form. A common European passenger tracking form should be developed that member states can use.”

Coordination and information to the public

“Member States that intend to apply restrictions must first inform the Member State concerned, before the entry into force, as well as the other Member States and the Commission – writes the Council – If possible, the communication should be made 48 hours in advance. Member States must also provide the public with clear, complete and timely information on any restrictions and requirements. As a general rule, such information must be published 24 hours before the measures come into force. “

Any measure that limits freedom of movement to protect public health must be “proportionate and non-discriminatory and must be withdrawn as soon as the epidemiological situation allows it,” the Council’s text reaffirms. .

As is clear from the tone, today’s decision does not represent an existing law, but a “recommendation”: the hope of Brussels (both for citizens and for the economy) is that the states will follow it without hindering each other.