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Regional governments are desperately trying to control a new outbreak of infections, lowering expectations that immunization will soon mitigate health risks. The authorities, realizing that the pandemic is still months away, are tightening measures, while trying to avoid restrictions as drastic as those introduced in spring, which caused a collapse in business activity.
Following Friday’s record for the day of infections and deaths, Germany is already introducing a hard quarantine on Wednesday and urging, not demanding, employers to close jobs. Italy and the Netherlands are also likely to tighten restrictions.
Such action has been taken in response to growing concern that the approaching date when the coronavirus vaccine will be available could fuel unacceptable complacency. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has once again called for efforts to protect her loved ones, while warning that the vaccine will take several months to have a tangible effect.
“The magnitude of the infections is so great that the measures we have taken so far are insufficient,” Helge Braun, head of Merkel’s administration, said in an interview with n-tv on Monday.
Europe’s largest economies are waiting “difficult days” before the vaccine becomes widely available, added Brown, a qualified physician.
The UK is already launching vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE, and the US was preparing to start vaccination on Monday. The European Union, while lagging behind in this context, prefers caution to speed. European Council President Charles Michel on Sunday expressed hope that the first COVID vaccines will be approved “in the coming weeks, maybe even this year.”
Governments under great pressure are working to start vaccinating the population as soon as possible. German Health Minister Jens Spahn said on Sunday that “all the necessary data is available” and that the country is ready to start vaccinating citizens as soon as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) approves the vaccine against the coronavirus.
“It is also about citizens’ confidence in the European Union’s ability to act,” Spahn wrote on Twitter. “The earlier we start vaccination, the more we can alleviate suffering and protect the most vulnerable.”
Meanwhile, the rate of infections continues to rise across the region and governments are forced to respond. German Finance Minister Peter Altmaier warned that if the current trend continues, hospitals will become congested in the coming weeks.
Coronavirus in Northern Ireland
© PA / Scanpix
Last weekend, Italy overtook the UK with the highest number of deaths from COVID-19, increasing the pressure on Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s administration. Authorities are already considering introducing new restrictions, abandoning previous actions that allow more activity during this period, the Corriere della Sera wrote on Monday.
Irish medical authorities said on Sunday they were concerned about the growing scale of infections. Ireland was the first Western European country to re-quarantine in October, reducing the number of cases to around 250 a day. The quarantine was relaxed ten days ago and the number of cases jumped to 429 on Sunday.
“The fight continues,” said Dr., Senior Health Advisor Dr. Ronan Glynnas. “The virus does not care that we have made significant progress recently,” he said, adding that the vaccine “will not have any positive effect on the course of the disease in the coming months.”
The Dutch government is likely to announce tougher measures earlier this week. According to local media reports, the country may follow Germany’s lead and close stores that sell non-essential products. Among other measures being considered by Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s Cabinet of Ministers, the media mention the closure of museums, cinemas and theaters, as well as the prolonged closure of schools after the Christmas holidays.
Austria on Monday reported a first-month rise in weekly infections to 218,000, more than four times the government’s target of 50. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz eased quarantine in the country last week, opening more stores and allowing students to return. to school. He said Friday that the possibility of a third wave in 2021 cannot be ruled out, even when the vaccine becomes available.
In Sweden, COVID-19 is widespread in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the third largest city in the country. More than 40 percent are already infected here. staff, the Dagens Nyheter newspaper reported Monday. There is a serious shortage of specialized medical care in the country, and the capacity utilization of the Stockholm ICU reached 99% last week.
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