Italy, which was hard hit by the first pandemic wave in 2020, is again seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases and the number of occupied intensive care unit beds in the middle of the winter flu season.
According to the most recent figures, Italy saw a 15% rise in COVID-19 cases, though related deaths continued to fall. At the same time, admissions to intensive care increased by 21.7%, while the figure for non-intensive care admissions increased by 9.8%.
“With the viral circulation on the rise, a plan for the winter is expected from the government”, says a health monitoring entity Gimbe president Nino Cartabellotta.
At the same time, the elderly and most vulnerable are eligible for the fourth COVID-19 vaccine, though uptake is slow, and some 6.8 million over 50’s remain unvaccinated.
“At the moment, all the ‘discontinuity’ actions of the Meloni government have gone in the opposite direction to that suggested by international public health authorities: to be prepared and ready to face possible new waves”, Cartabellotta said.
“Therefore, the preparedness plan for the winter season is expected from the executive as soon as possible”, he added.
When she took office, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni promised she would not replicate the model adopted by the Draghi government were new COVID-19 waves to arise.
“Italy has adopted the most restrictive measures in the entire West, going so far as to severely limit the fundamental freedoms of people and economic activities, but, despite this, it is among the states with the worst data in terms of mortality and contagions”, said Meloni.
Italian Health Minister Orazio Schillaci called the disease “completely different from what it used to be” and said the ministry is working to ensure “greater liberalisation”.
Since Meloni started to head the government, figures on the monitoring of COVID-19 has shifted to weekly rather than daily.
(Federica Pascale | EURACTIV.it)
Source: euractiv.com
