The Scientific Council had recommended from January 29 a "
strict confinement of four weeks
" from February, according to a note made public Wednesday February 24 on the website of the Ministry of Solidarity and Health.
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Entitled "Update on the variants, models, prospects for the month of March", the report written by the Scientific Council mentions the "
increased transmissibility of the English variant
" and a "
progression
" in countries such as France. having not adopted a strict containment.
After having carried out two independent studies and observed the positive impact of reinforced measures in "
the most affected countries
" such as England, Ireland and Portugal, the Scientific Council recommended the return of strict confinement for a period of four weeks in France.
In the report, the models reveal that in the absence of strengthening of health measures "
the rapid and significant increase in the number of cases and hospitalizations
" is to be expected as well as a rapid growth in the number of hospitalizations, exceeding "
that observed during the first wave of the pandemic
”.
In order to alleviate the upsurge in cases and slow down the spread of "
the VOC (British) variant and probably the South African variant
", the Scientific Council noted the effects of a generalized re-containment in France: a fall in "
the circulation of the virus around 5,000 daily contaminations
”;
complete vaccination in nursing homes;
and finally build a screening strategy for variants as well as in places at risk.
Without reinforced measures, the Scientific Council concludes "
a rapid resurgence of cases from mid-March to April
".
France recorded more than 31,000 new cases on Wednesday evening, a figure much higher than the 5,000 daily contaminations recommended by the Scientific Council to deal with variants.
Ten departments are strongly affected by the epidemic.
In Moselle, Dunkirk and the Alpes-Maritimes, the measures have been stepped up.
Prime Minister Jean Castex will speak this Thursday evening to take stock of the situation, which worries the government.
