What if France never reconfines itself?
This is in substance the note of hope that suggests, with great caution, the Minister of Health Olivier Véran this Tuesday on France Info.
"I hope that we can, as soon as possible, give freedoms to the French," insists the minister, a doctor by profession, who received his first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine the day before as a caregiver under the age of 65.
“Containment is not a choice of ease and safety, it is a choice of necessity when the epidemic situation escapes us.
This is not the case.
"
"Each week that we win on confinement, it is an additional week of freedom for the French," insists Olivier Véran, who takes advantage of his intervention to take stock of the vaccination situation.
“Between 3.5 and 4 million people” will be vaccinated “by the end of the month” of February, he announces.
In the meantime, all of the February slots are filled.
"Slots will be opened in March and if we have additional inflows of doses - and I hope that we will have some - we can regularly reopen additional slots for the French," said the minister.
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According to Olivier Véran, the state of the epidemic is "stable and high".
"We are working with scientists, we hope to have the little extra that would lower the epidemic", he confides, returning to the new restrictions announced the previous week by Prime Minister Jean Castex.
"France is conducting investigations like no other country is in a position to do," continues Olivier Véran, who wants to be reassuring about the emergence of variants of the coronavirus.
“These variants are increasing quickly, but less quickly than in countries that are not on curfew.
We track the variant very actively.
We are extending the isolation of people with varying degrees of 7 to 10 days, ”he says.
In Mayotte, great vigilance in the face of the South African variant
In schools, and faced with the call from scientists to leave schools closed for four weeks, the Minister recalls the priority given to the education of the youngest.
“The vast majority of schools are open, education is a priority.
It is a choice that honors us, ”says Olivier Véran.
For the world of culture, ambition is more timid.
“It is very complicated to have a stop-and-go policy and to say we reopen tomorrow, insists the minister.
We are moving forward with the actors (of the sector) who, in responsibility, work with us.
"
While the effectiveness of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which has just arrived on the market, is deemed insufficient against the South African variant, Olivier Véran is reassuring for the metropolitan territory.
However, “I have a particular eye on overseas situations,” he said.
I am thinking of Mayotte ”, where“ we are considering strengthening the protection of caregivers with messenger RNA type vaccines, ”said the minister.
