Soon the return of the mask in transport? Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne in any case called for caution on Tuesday and launched a “solemn appeal” to wear the mask again and to respect barrier gestures, especially with the most fragile, or “in areas of promiscuity”. She talks about “decisive gestures to roll back the epidemic” of Covid-19 as the number of cases starts to rise again.
“This new wave reminds us, the virus has not disappeared, the epidemic is still striking,” said the head of government. In front of the deputies, she called on the French to get vaccinated, both against the flu and against Covid-19, and to “be vigilant”.
This is “additional pressure” on hospitals which are already dealing with epidemics of influenza and bronchiolitis, she recalled, calling for vaccination against influenza and Covid.
The Prime Minister notably mentioned “more than 40,000 cases detected per day, an increase of almost 10% in hospitalizations over one week, a 22% increase in hospitalizations in critical care and 400 deaths from Covid last week”. This Friday, 48,629 new cases were recorded, compared to 33,177 new cases the previous Friday, an increase of 46%.
Elisabeth Borne insisted on the need for vaccination reminders, which “only 10% of the target population” carried out, before declaring: “Get vaccinated, it protects you, it protects our hospital”, to the address of its fellow citizens.
Welcoming the “exceptional” work of the nursing staff, the Prime Minister considered that “our duty is to help them, not to take purely ideological measures which would make their mission even more difficult”. Several opposition groups are calling for the reinstatement of caregivers not vaccinated against Covid, a subject which had provoked heated debates last week in the Assembly.