The decline in the epidemic continues. While the first reductions came into effect this week, the government is beginning to consider lifting the final measures.
Is the return to normal taking shape? The fifth wave of Covid-19 continues in any case to withdraw in France. While the epidemic peak passed at the end of January, the pressure caused by the epidemic on hospitals continues to decrease with just over 29,000 patients who tested positive currently hospitalized. The downward trend is also found in critical care services which receive the most serious cases, particularly in intensive care. On the other hand, the number of deaths remains stable, around 265 per day.
On the contamination front, the daily average over seven days, which smooths out the differences observed from one day to the next, is down sharply to 92,504 against 159,323 a week earlier. Nearly 22 million positive cases have been identified in France since the start of the epidemic according to figures from Public Health France. Two-thirds of these infections have occurred in the last three months, in particular because of the more contagious omicron variant.
Cases of reinfection with Covid-19 are not “not rare” in France, Public Health France noted on Friday. Initial work, on samples between January 1, 2021 and January 27, 2022, showed 416,995 possible cases of reinfection for people with two positive tests at least 60 days apart, i.e. 2.8% of confirmed cases. over this period.
Other reductions envisaged in a month
These encouraging figures give hope that almost all of the health restrictions still in force in France will be lifted within a few weeks, if the improvement on the epidemic front is confirmed. Nightclubs, which have been among the most penalized with 18 months of closure over two years of crisis, have already reopened their doors on Wednesday. Eating popcorn in a cinema, a sandwich in a stadium or on a train, having a drink standing at a bar counter or attending a concert is also possible again.
On Friday, the government published its decree which aims to lighten the health protocol at school. The end of masks in playgrounds will apply on the return from school holidays, i.e. from Monday for zone B. From February 28, the mask will no longer be compulsory in closed places subject to the vaccination pass, transport excepted.
The Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, considered Wednesday on France Info the end of the wearing of the mask indoors for adults and children “in mid-March”as well as a reduction in the vaccination pass on this date, if the circulation of the virus is “very weak”.
After Israel, England, Denmark, the lifting of the vaccination pass in France is possible “by the end of March” or start “April”, had estimated last week Alain Fischer, the “Mister vaccine” of the government. If, and only if, several conditions are met: an incidence rate “10 or 20 times less” that currently, the end of the hospital overload and a very high proportion of vaccinated. “There are reasons to hope that by this time horizon the situation will have improved sufficiently for us to be able to lift these final measures”added government spokesman Gabriel Attal.