Many French people thought it was inevitable, but eventually the government decided not to set it up. After several weeks of waiting, it was Friday, January 29, 2021 that Jean Castex finally spoke to announce the new health rules to reduce the national rate of contamination with Covid-19. So, while rumors of a third confinement hovered over the country for some time, Emmanuel Macron decided to "give yourself a chance to avoid it ". If the state has shown itself optimistic about the evolution of the infectious germ on the territory, he still took his precautions by establishing strict rules. Indeed, the Prime Minister announced that "all entry into France and any exit from our territory to or from a country outside the European Union " is now prohibited, and ordered the closure of non-food shopping centers of more than 20,000 m2, until further notice. A decision that angered a famous French researcher who was counting on a new period of isolation for guarantee more medical control over the pandemic.
Hélène Lacombe in favor of containment
In an interview with Obs, Hélène Lacombe, infectious disease specialist, did not hide her astonishment at the government's choice. "We are scared, dumbfounded " she declared. According to the head of the infectious diseases department at Saint-Antoine hospital in Paris, the President of the Republic overrides the advice of health specialists: "Despite scientific evidence, Macron was carried by his liberal side" she insisted. The 50-year-old is therefore counting on the vaccine to try to reduce the rate of transmission: "the vaccination campaign can only be the only positive factor that can really influence the evolution of the epidemic " she explained to the microphone of BFM TV Wednesday 9 December 2020.
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