In an interview with the Journal du Dimanche, the Minister of Health warns the younger generations against the acceleration of contamination with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, but excludes for the moment any general reconfinement.
- The Minister of Health recalls that the virus “circulates four times more” among those under 40 than among those over 65.
- For the time being, a general reconfinement of the French population is not envisaged.
“We are in a risky situation”. In an interview granted on August 23 to the Sunday newspaperOlivier Véran calls for everyone to be vigilant, especially the youngest.
While since the beginning of the month, the indicators have started to rise again and France recorded more than 3,600 new cases on Saturday, the Minister of Health wanted to recall that the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic “never stopped”. “She was only checked during confinement and then progressive deconfinement”specifies Olivier Véran, who emphasizes that“After three months of decline in the circulation of the virus, we have observed a clear increase for five weeks, globally, and actively in certain territories. This is not a French exception, it is a European dynamic”.
Raising awareness among young people, a priority
According to the Minister of Health, these are now “under 40” who are at the forefront of contaminationsince the virus “circulates four times more” in this age group than in those over 65. But if “young people are more often asymptomatic, have fewer medical complications”they are not necessarily immune and can “to contaminate the elderly, who more often contract more severe forms of the disease“.
To stop contamination, the government is therefore relying on awareness. “You may not care about the virus, but it doesn’t care about you any less. Your behavior can make a difference. You feel like you’re safe, but that’s not true: young people in great shape can end up in intensive care. And you risk infecting more fragile people and causing consequences for your city that you no longer want”warns Olivier Véran, who also specifies that there will also be more controls and sanctions.
No general reconfinement
If the epidemic starts to rise again from the start of the school year, should we expect a new general confinement? For the Ministry of Health, “it’s not on the agenda” and that does not constitute for the time being “not a working hypothesis”. “Unlike in the spring, we have more knowledge, more means at our disposal. We can put in place specific, territorialized measures, as we have done successfully in Mayenne.” Olivier Véran also relies on the definition and implementation of “all the rules and protocols necessary for the start of the school year can take place in the best conditions“. With, in the first place, the wearing of the compulsory mask for teaching staff and students over the age of 11 from the start of the school year.
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