A department closely scrutinized.
In his weekly update this Thursday, the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, highlighted “the more worrying situation” of the Moselle department where, according to recent analyzes, the variants of the coronavirus detected in South Africa and Brazil seem more present than in the rest of the territory.
In recent days, "more than 300 cases of suggestive mutations" of these variants have been detected in the department of Grand Est, explained the minister, while other French departments have recorded only a few dozen or even a few cases linked to these mutations.
There were already "200 cases" the previous days, said the minister.
Worse, many cases do not appear to be related to clusters or contacts with people who have traveled to South Africa or Brazil, which makes
contact tracing
more difficult.
At this stage, the health authorities have "no explanation for the dissemination of these variants" in the department, admitted Olivier Véran.
The proximity of the department to other countries, such as Germany and Luxembourg, could present an avenue to study, he added.
A “flash” reconfinement for the department?
Moselle is one of the departments where the incidence rate of the epidemic is "higher than the average", all variants combined.
Faced with this progression of the epidemic, the minister mentioned the possibility of more drastic measures to limit it locally, without giving the precise details.
Asked by BFM TV, the LR mayor of Metz, François Grosdidier, said he was in favor of an emergency re-containment of his department, "limited in space and time", with the closure of his schools.
LR MP Fabien Di Filippo said he was opposed to such a measure.
"Just re-confine the Moselle would be nonsense, thousands of people work outside the territory every day and traffic will resume as soon as the confinement ends.
The situation in Metz-Métropole is not that of rurality and pulls the average upwards, ”he explains to the Parisian.
Olivier Véran will visit the department on Friday, in order to conduct a consultation.
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The spread of these variants is of particular concern to health authorities.
Judged to be more contagious than those circulating in France until now, they are also more resistant to currently available vaccines.
They manage to "bypass immunity" and cause re-infections, recalled the Minister of Health.
Out of 17,000 screenings analyzed in France over the last four days, 4 to 5% of samples showed mutations similar to those of these variants, added the minister.