One week before Christmas, restrictions are multiplying again across the world in the face of the rise of the Omicron variant, between restoring gauges, canceling festivities or closing cultural places, with increased pressure on the unvaccinated.
Just a month after its identification in South Africa, the Omicron variant has already been identified in nearly 80 countries and is progressing dramatically in Europe, where it could become dominant by mid-January, according to the European Commission.
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Several countries of the Old Continent have stepped up their health measures as the end of the year holidays approach.
In Ireland, bars, pubs and restaurants will have to close from 8 p.m. from Sunday until the end of January.
Denmark, which on Friday recorded a new all-time record of 11,000 cases, including 2,500 Omicron, will close its theaters, cinemas and concert halls for one month on Sunday, as well as its amusement parks and museums.
In France, the government has asked town halls to cancel concerts or fireworks scheduled for New Year’s Eve.
On the American continent, Quebec will reinstate gauges in bars, restaurants and stores.
In Asia, South Korea is restoring mandatory closing times for cafes, restaurants, cinemas and other public places this Saturday, and private gatherings must now be limited to four people.
The first travel restrictions also started to fall this weekend.
France is restoring from this Saturday the obligation of “compelling reasons” for travelers from and to the United Kingdom, which recorded for the third consecutive day a new record of contaminations, with 93,045 cases.
Within the European Union itself, some countries, such as Ireland, Portugal, Italy and Greece, now require European travelers, even vaccinated, to present a negative test.
Germany, which on Friday classified France and Denmark as areas of “high-risk” infections, will impose a period of quarantine on unvaccinated travelers from these countries. From Sunday, the measure will also apply to travelers coming from Norway, Lebanon and Andorra.
Everywhere, the measures are accompanied by increased pressure against the unvaccinated, up to the point of compulsory vaccination.
Thus, in Los Angeles, as of Saturday, all city employees, police and firefighters included, who have not obtained an exemption for a medical or religious reason, will have to be vaccinated, under penalty of being placed on leave. administrative. According to city hall services, just over 43,800 municipal employees, or about 79% of the total, were up to date this week.
This vaccination obligation has been strongly contested by some police officers or firefighters who have tried, so far unsuccessfully, to have the measure suspended by the courts.
According to NBC TV, around 80% of Los Angeles police officers are vaccinated against COVID-19, but more than 2,500 of them remain reluctant and have applied for an exemption, which will be reviewed in the coming weeks. .
On Friday, a US federal court reinstated the vaccine requirement for employees of large companies, desired by the Biden administration, and which had been suspended in early November by a Texas appeals court. This decision can still be challenged up to the Supreme Court.
In Switzerland, from Monday, only people vaccinated or cured will have access to the interior of restaurants, cultural establishments and sports and leisure facilities as well as to indoor events.
An obligation which should also come into force at the beginning of the year in France, where the health pass will become a “vaccine pass”, announced Friday evening Prime Minister Jean Castex. To enter places subject to this pass (restaurants, places of culture, recreation, etc.), a negative test will no longer suffice: it will necessarily be necessary to have been vaccinated (or cured of the Covid) and to have received a booster dose.
At the same time, vaccination is spreading almost everywhere to children, with Brazil having joined other countries which practice it such as Canada, the United States, Israel, Chile, Portugal, Italy and Greece.
In France, the ethics committee (CCNE) voted on Friday in favor of opening vaccination every 5-11 years, while insisting on leaving the choice to parents.
Pfizer announced on Friday that it wanted to test a third dose of the anti-Covid vaccine in children under 5, which could lead the company to file an authorization request for three doses immediately next year in this unit. of age.
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