Restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic In France, it will remain in effect at least until the end of January, and the start of the night curfew is expected to be introduced in ten more provinces. Prime Minister Jean Castex announced Thursday.
The Prime Minister acknowledged that “the health situation has become fragile again in recent weeks,” noting that the daily number of cases has stagnated at around 15,000 since the general quarantine was lifted on December 15. Jan Castex He called for further easing of austerity in the coming weeks.
It also announced in its weekly press conference that restaurants will remain closed until at least mid-February and that cultural institutions and sports facilities will not open in January. The government will decide the possible opening of theaters, cinemas and museums in early February on January 20.
At the same time, the Prime Minister expressed his hope so It is already possible to open the ski slopes for the February school holidays.
The night curfew is expected to start two hours earlier, at 6 PM, in ten more provinces, Similar to the fifteen provinces in the eastern and southeastern parts of the country where austerity was implemented in early January. The decision will be taken on Friday in consultation with local authorities.
The extended curfew affects around 6 million people, a fifth of the country. In these areas, the number of infected people per 100,000 inhabitants has again crossed the maximum alert threshold of 250, while the national average is currently only 150.
The Prime Minister also announced an acceleration and expansion of the vaccination campaign: People over the age of 75 will be able to receive the vaccine from January 18, and vaccination is now available for people living in social institutions and over the age of 50 due to a disability.
“France is still going through difficult times, but 2021 will be the year of hope thanks to vaccination,” the prime minister said.
“Vaccination has become the first priority for government action. We are convinced that vaccination on a larger scale, more massive and faster can end the crisis. At the same time, we do not confuse speed with rush,” he added.
According to the original plans, residents and workers in nursing homes could only be vaccinated in January. However, the government has been criticized by the opposition for slowing the vaccination campaign. While fewer than a thousand people were vaccinated by Monday, 45,000 people were vaccinated in the past five days, according to the prime minister. It is estimated that one million French will be vaccinated by the end of the month.
Health Minister Olivier Ferrand indicated that six weeks between two vaccines from the manufacturer Pfizer-BioNTech instead of three can be done without risks and loss of efficacy.
The director of the ministry stressed that “as a result, we have multiple doses to get the largest possible number of people to get the first vaccine.”
The Prime Minister noted that “in a unique way in Europe, the test is completely free for everyone in France at more than 12,000 test sites.” He also said that France is currently being nominated the most in Europe. In May, the government set a target of 700,000 tests per week, but as early as September, 1 million a week participated in shows, rising to 2 million in November and over 3 million in the week before the year-end.
According to data released by the Ministry of Health on Thursday night, 21,703 new infections were reported during the past 24 hours, and the number of hospital admissions remains stagnant: 24,488 injured, 253 less than on Wednesday, and 2,753 in the intensive care unit, i.e. less. With 43. more than 24 hours ago. The death toll from 277 rose to 66,841. (MTI)
