Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in a press briefing: "We are seeing a wave of illness, mainly in children."
He stressed: "I do not intend to give any more relief at this stage."
During the week, the Cabinet of Ministers for the Care of Corona is expected to convene to discuss preparations for the start of winter.
"After a slight respite, the COVID returns with a mini-wave of children and we learn that the epidemic is an ongoing event that could take another year or two," Bennett said.
"As part of the struggle in the fourth wave, we have built an advanced and holistic system for the State of Israel. A system that operates and will continue to operate."
The children's vaccine doses are received at the logistics center prior to distribution // Photo: Sela Teva
Ahead of the child vaccination campaign, which will begin this week, the prime minister clarified: "Our line is a line of transparency, of knowledge, information through doctors and not celebrities. We want to convince parents in a reasoned and transparent way through data. There will be information through HMOs and GPs in various programs. We will act in a moderate manner and explain that it is in the parent's interest to take care of the child and not just in the interest of the state. "
It is estimated that 50% of the parents are interested in vaccinating the children, and another 25% are undecided on the issue so that it will be possible to reach a vaccination rate of 75% during the operation.
At this stage, no measures are planned against the unvaccinated - such as payment for antigen tests - but in four weeks an assessment of the situation should take place.
Bennett referred to Israel's effective vaccine level and said it was "the best in the world."
According to him, "the international indices focus on how many people have been vaccinated twice, but the correct measure is that a person is vaccinated with what needs to be vaccinated over a period of time. Almost 50% of Israel was vaccinated with boosters, with 10% in the US and 5% in Germany.
The world is averaging 3%.
"Israel has a good level of protection. The borders are maintained in the best way possible. 100% of those who enter the country are checked twice, and almost 100% of those verified at the airport are paved.
Later in the briefing, the Prime Minister referred to Israel's preparations for winter in the shadow of the increase in morbidity.
"The State of Israel can reach a winter when everything is open," Bennett said.
"It's within our reach and it's up to us. The plan is to leave the State of Israel open and succeed in this continuum without severe restrictions. That is what we need to work for. There is a wave of children, I will not renew you. -11% up to the age of 18 ".
According to Bennett, "Two-thirds of the new verified are simply children who have not been vaccinated, so there is something misleading about looking at the total number and not breaking it down into sub-streams."
He added: "We are entering a winter that creates a double challenge of both flu and corona. The flu expectation is more severe than usual because we 'skipped' flu last year, and this 'skip' creates a more difficult situation than last year because vaccines are trying to 'hit' to identify the virus. If two years have passed - it's harder. "
Meanwhile, the health system continues to monitor the effectiveness of the booster dose and it is estimated that there is a slight decrease in the number of antibodies, but there does not appear to be a decrease in the protection of the vaccine.
It is estimated that the booster will last longer than the second vaccine but monitoring of its decline continues.
