Nothing frightening for the moment.
But all the same.
After a long period of decline, the circulation curves of the Covid-19 no longer show the momentum which could, just a few days ago, augur a winter finally free of the coronavirus.
The number of cases is even on the rise, a first since this summer: the average incidence rate in France, observed at 43 positive cases per 100,000 inhabitants during the first week of October, was at 46 last week. .
This rate has stagnated for a few days, even benefiting from a very slight decline (to 45.3 over a week from Saturday 9 to Friday 15 October) that we owe to a number of anti-Covid tests that skyrocketed last week. , just before the end of the reimbursement for those referred to as comfort.
The question of the arrival in France of a new epidemic wave is not yet on the agenda.
It is however pointing the tip of its nose, while the alert threshold, set at 50 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, could be reached again by mid-November, once the effect of the end of the reimbursement of tests gone.
The concern also stems from the worrying situation in some countries.
In Russia, the bar of 1,000 dead in twenty-four hours was exceeded for the very first time since the start of the pandemic.
There is no sign of improvement in the coming weeks, when only 32% of the Russian population is fully vaccinated.
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The worrying case of the United Kingdom
The case of the United Kingdom, where health restrictions have been a thing of the past since July, is also worrying. For two weeks, new contaminations have fluctuated between 35,000 and 45,000 daily cases, with an incidence rate of 410 cases per 100,000 inhabitants recorded on October 12, nearly 10 times more than in France. Only Romania, Serbia and the Baltic countries are in a worse situation.
While 79% of Britons over the age of 12 are vaccinated, the first people to be bitten now experience a decline in immunity to the virus, a fact made even worse by the massive use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which is less effective. higher than that of its competitors. In mid-September, the British government launched its recall campaign, open to people over 50 and caregivers, but only 41% of those vaccinated more than six months ago have so far received their new injection.
The situation is not as worrying in France, but the health authorities are facing a similar problem for the booster vaccination campaign.
A little over 18 million French people are eligible: those over 65 and those, without any age requirement above 12, having received the Janssen vaccine, suffering from a high-risk pathology, comorbid or immunocompromised.
Caregivers and relatives of immunocompromised people have also been affected for several days.
But, despite the opening of the recall campaign on September 1, only 1.8 million of these candidates for the 3rd dose have taken the step, a very low ratio of only 10%.
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Kill two birds with one stone against seasonal flu
“This campaign started too slowly, recognizes the Ministry of Health. But we have seen a jump and an acceleration for two weeks now. The possibility of being vaccinated with the Pfizer product among general practitioners has certainly produced its effect, as has the TV commercials campaign launched last Wednesday
(October 13)
. This is not enough, we cannot be satisfied with it and we will do everything to encourage eligible people to make an appointment. The objective, for the public authorities, is to convince the oldest people, and therefore those who were vaccinated among the first from the months of January and February this year, to make their recall while their immunity s day after day.
At the Ministry of Health, we are counting on the launch, from Friday, of the seasonal flu vaccination campaign to boost that of anti-covid booster shots.
One way to kill two birds with one stone, by betting on the fact that city doctors will invite their patients to be injected a third dose at the same time as that against the flu.
In a press release published on September 27, the High Authority for Health validated this double vaccination, even evoking "a safe choice when possible".
