Corona pandemic: Spain is apparently becoming a high incidence area

Status: 07/23/2021 6:57 a.m.

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According to media reports, the federal government wants to declare Spain and the Netherlands to be high incidence areas. In Spain, the increase in new infections is slowing, in Italy the “Green Passport” is coming.

The federal government apparently wants to classify Spain and the Netherlands as corona high incidence areas. The “Funke media group” reports with reference to government circles. The Robert Koch Institute today publishes the federal government’s new corona classifications for foreign countries. The final decision by the responsible ministries for health, home affairs and foreign affairs is usually made shortly beforehand.

Anyone who returns from a high-incidence area and is not fully vaccinated or recovered has to be in quarantine for ten days, but can shorten this with a negative test after five days. In Spain and the Netherlands, the number of corona infections had risen sharply in recent weeks.

Increase in new infections in Spain is slowing

At least in Spain, the increase in new infections is slowing down a little. The seven-day incidence rose to 333 yesterday, according to the Ministry of Health in Madrid. That was just one more than the previous day. For the Balearic Islands with Mallorca as the Germans’ favorite holiday island, the value was given as 365 – an increase of 18 points compared to the previous day. Spain as a whole and 16 of its 17 regions are thus above the value of 200, above which Germany can declare a country or region to be a high incidence area.

When deciding whether to upgrade Spain or individual regions from a risk area to a high incidence area, factors other than just incidences should also be taken into account. These could be the situation in the health system, the death rate and the status of the vaccination campaign. In Spain, around 13.5 percent of the beds in intensive care units are currently occupied by corona patients, and 78 corona deaths were counted within seven days. 70 percent of the 47 million inhabitants have received at least one corona vaccination, 52.8 percent are fully vaccinated.

Spain plans to start donating 7.5 million doses of vaccine this week. According to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, the vaccines will mainly go to Latin America. As Sanchez explains in an interview with CNN, the vaccines are distributed through the international vaccination alliance Covax.

Italy introduces the “Green Pass”

Due to the increasing number of infections, Italy is tightening the corona measures. Anyone who wants to enter the interiors of restaurants, bars or sports facilities in the country will need a health passport in the future: The so-called Green Pass is to be introduced from August 6, as the government in Rome announced. The nationally valid document provides information about corona vaccinations, past infections and corona tests. It should be issued after the first – and therefore still incomplete – immunization against the coronavirus.

“The health pass is a tool that enables Italians to go about their activities while ensuring that they are not around contagious people,” said Prime Minister Mario Draghi. The “Green Pass” is therefore also an entry ticket to sporting events, concerts, theater performances, trade fairs or congresses – wherever many people come together in a confined space and could be infected with the coronavirus. According to the government, nightclubs should remain closed.

The health pass had led to tensions within the governing coalition. The head of the right-wing extremist Lega party, Matteo Salvini, had warned against “inappropriate decisions” that “prevent the majority of Italians from their right to work and freedom of movement.” Prime Minister Draghi warned the Italians of the more contagious Delta variant, which is also becoming increasingly common in Italy. “I invite all Italians to be vaccinated, and immediately,” said the head of government. Yesterday, the Italian health authorities registered 5057 new infections within 24 hours, and the number of cases has recently increased again.

Britain wants daily tests for supermarket employees

After an increase in new infections, Israel also wants to reintroduce the Green Pass because of the more contagious Delta variant. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s office said the measure would go into effect on July 29, if approved by the government. In events with more than 100 participants, only people who have been fully vaccinated, have recovered or have a negative test result are allowed to take part. The main focus is on cultural and sporting events, fitness centers, restaurants, conferences, tourist attractions and houses of prayer. Israel had given up a large part of the corona restrictions in June after a significant progress in vaccination.

U.K. plans to introduce daily corona tests for employees in the food sector to keep the industry going. With a negative test result, employees could continue working, even if they had previously been asked by an app warning to quarantine, the government said. According to official Corona warnings for hundreds of thousands of employees in retail and wholesale, shelves in supermarkets in Great Britain remained empty. The problems associated with the app warning – called “Pingdemic” in England without further ado – come at a time when Prime Minister Boris Johnson has only just largely freed the economy from corona restrictions.