The third wave continues to pick up speed in Spain.
The Ministry of Health reported this Monday afternoon of 61,422 new infections compared to last Friday, the largest increase recorded on a Monday - a day on which weekend data is also included - since the start of the pandemic.
The number of new deaths notified in these three days amounts to 401.
"Complicated weeks are coming", has warned from the start of his appearance the director of the Center for Coordination of Health Alerts and Emergencies (CCAES) of Health, Fernando Simón.
"In the coming days an increase in incidence is expected", which already stands at 436 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the previous 14 days.
The trend continues to be "clearly upward" and "the situation is not promising," he declared.
Without losing his calm but firm oratory and a somewhat gloomy tone, Simón has pointed out up to six times to the past Christmas holidays as the origin of the current acceleration in the circulation of the virus: “We have perhaps had a better time than we could or should have. and now we have to assume what is coming ”.
What is coming is a complicated situation in hospitals, which already have almost 14% of beds occupied by coronavirus patients, a percentage that rises to 26% in intensive care units.
Although it is still too early to be noticed, Simón has shown his desire that in a few days the effect of the new restrictions imposed after the feast of Kings will begin to be noticed.
"The hope is that the ICUs and hospital beds are not saturated," he said regarding these measures.
Simón's words have been, above all, a call to responsibility after what, without using words, he has implied as Christmas excesses.
He wished that both administrations and citizens now know how to apply the restrictions imposed to contain the spread of the virus.
When asked about the new, more contagious British variant, the director of CCAES reiterated the message: “The problem is not the new strain, it is our behavior.
If we apply them well [prevention measures], we will be able to control ”the epidemic curve.
On the optimistic side of his statements, more reduced than usual, Simón has pointed to vaccines, although he admits that there are still a few weeks until their effect can begin to be noticed.
"Perhaps in February, when more than a million people have already been vaccinated," he pointed out, recalling that each one should receive two doses.
New confinement
He also wanted to send a hopeful message when asked about whether it will be necessary to order a new home confinement.
"It was not necessary to control the second wave," he recalled, highlighting the great impact that this tough measure has "on society and the economy."
"If we are in solidarity, if we administer the measures in an appropriate way, we will manage to control it," he added.
In Spanish hospitals there are currently 16,791 admitted for covid.
There are 3,333 more, almost a 25% increase, than just a week ago.
In ICUs, the increase was 319 people (14.6% more), reaching 2,511 intensive care places.
The situation is especially complicated in La Rioja, which already has 42% of its ICUs occupied by coronavirus patients, Valencian Community (40%), Catalonia (39%), Balearic Islands (37%) and Madrid (36%), although the increase is generalized in practically all of Spain.
Increase of tests
An example of this is the very important increase in the number of diagnostic tests ―PCR and antigen tests― performed.
After a couple of weeks in which they barely exceeded 100,000, a week due to the succession of holidays, last Friday they exceeded 180,000.
Despite this, the positivity - the percentage of positives out of the total number of tests carried out - shows the great circulation of the virus at this time.
The average in all Spain rose to 16.7% on Friday, but in autonomous regions such as Castilla-La Mancha and the Valencian Community it was above 30%.
Extremadura continues to be the most affected community, with an incidence that already reaches 1,022 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by the Balearic Islands (598) and Madrid (596).
On the contrary, the Canary Islands and Asturias are the only ones in which the incidence continues to be below 200 cases.
Andalusia, which until just a few days ago also suffered similar incidents, has experienced a sudden increase and is now approaching 300 cases of incidence.
Information about the coronavirus
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