The Netherlands can really get ready for a summer full of events. OMT member and virologist at Amsterdam UMC Menno de Jong is cautiously positive about the cabinet’s plan to make festivals possible from the end of June. ”’Festivals such as Lowlands are possible, but we should not get overconfident.” That is what De Jong says in a new Corona Q&A. AT5.
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The number of infections in the Netherlands, but also in Amsterdam, has fallen sharply in recent weeks. The hospitals are also seeing fewer and fewer new corona patients ”I am very happy with the figures. The number of vaccinations is also increasing rapidly. That also contributed to the decline. The situation is a lot rosier compared to the last time I was here. The weather also cooperates”, says De Jong.
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The relaxations that the cabinet would like to take at the end of June have not yet been officially submitted to the OMT for advice. That won’t happen until soon.
OMT member De Jong understands that the other relaxations will be brought forward and will come into effect next week. “It doesn’t matter if you relax four days earlier. That’s fine, even if you look at the numbers. They will continue to fall. I’m glad it eased after when we were well over the peak. That’s sensible. It is also good that there is two to three weeks between each step of easing. So far it’s going really well. I am overjoyed.”
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”I drove up to this studio and saw people sitting on the terrace. That works very well”
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He continues: ”I drove up to this studio and saw people sitting on the terrace. That works very well. Life is coming back and that is made possible by the better numbers. We have to go a little lower. There are still 900 beds with corona patients and half of the patients in the IC have corona. This trend will continue, allowing for more easing.”
Vaccination readiness
However, there are concerns about the vaccination rate among certain groups in society. So is the vaccination readiness among Amsterdammers with a migration background still low. ”This is about Amsterdam, but it takes place in several parts of the Netherlands. The bible belt, for example, such as Urk. That can lead to local outbreaks. I think that can be done. But in a city like Amsterdam it might have more impact because it can all start to mix.”
De Jong also believes that we should look beyond our national borders. “We are dealing with a pandemic. There are areas in the world where people would like to vaccinate, but where vaccines are not available. We need to pay a lot of attention to that if we really want to put the pandemic behind us.”
Festivals
De Jong is also cautiously positive about the continuation of festivals from the end of June. “It really depends on the numbers at the time. A little ice and back serving. I would love to go to a festival like Lowlands. I’m also glad it might be possible. We just mustn’t get overconfident. In England, other variants of the virus throw a spanner in the works.”
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”We should not think if Lowlands can continue, the pandemic is over”
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The virologist affiliated with Amsterdam UMC also thinks that caution is required now that some deliveries of vaccines are disappointing. ”We should not think if Lowlands can continue, the pandemic will also be over. A lot is possible with vaccinated people and access tests. We can also see it as an experiment: if the infections do increase, we may have to take a step back. We really need to look closely at it. We must keep the basic measures until we are really in calmer waters. We are going to have a very nice summer, but the winter season is also approaching. The virus is not gone. Our starting position is much better than last year.”
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