The cabinet’s decision to extend the corona measures until April 28 can count on unanimous support from the House of Representatives. At the same time, a part of the House is deeply concerned about the capacity in the intensive care departments and several parties are wondering whether it is time for extra measures. But that is not necessary according to Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
“What other steps can we take to prevent more people from ending up in intensive care?” This question from GroenLinks leader Jesse Klaver to the cabinet was central to the debate on extending corona measures on Wednesday.
“Renewal is wise,” said Geert Wilders (PVV). “And RIVM is cautiously optimistic, but the reality is jet black. 2,400 IC beds will be needed this Sunday. How will the Cabinet arrange this? And what if the ICs overflow?”
Earlier in the day, a briefing with Diederik Gommers, chairman of the Dutch Association for Intensive Care (NVIC), showed that the emergency scenario in which more patients end up in intensive care than hospitals can take into account. What the care will look like if the number of ICU patients exceeds 2,400, he said he did not know.
When is there a crisis situation?
Lodewijk Asscher (PvdA) asked the cabinet for clarification. The third phase, in which there is a crisis scenario that Gommers spoke about earlier, can only be determined by the minister. “When will that crisis decision be made?”
He wants to know on the basis of which facts and conditions this black scenario exists, in which the minister must decide who can and who cannot end up on the IC.
The inconvenience about the IC capacity is common to almost all parties in the House. And although there is widespread support for the extension of the measures, part of the House wonders whether the cabinet should stop taking action to prevent the ICs from being able to cope.
For example, CDA member Pieter Heerma is surprised that there is no form of control of flights from the seat of the New York fire. He also receives signals that Germans and Belgians plan to go to the Netherlands during the Easter weekend. Heerma therefore advocates border controls.
Klaver agrees and also wants a compulsory closure of holiday parks during the May holidays. But there is more that he can do. Together with Asscher, he wonders why religious meetings with a maximum of thirty people are still allowed.
No stricter measures, possibly a decision on flights from New York
The cabinet does not want to ban religious services, because the Prime Minister says this is not possible under the constitution. At the same time, he sees that various faith communities are already adhering to the guidelines.
However, even stricter measures are not necessary, according to Rutte. “There is now a tight package,” he said. “The measures seem to work.” The prime minister said that the experts do not currently recommend moving forward, but the cabinet is considering a possible influx of German tourists and flights from New York. The cabinet is expected to make a decision on this on Thursday.
Follow the latest developments around the virus in our live blog.
The coronavirus in short
- The coronavirus mainly spreads from person to person via sneezing and cough drops. The chance of becoming infected through surfaces such as door handles is small. This chance decreases if you wash your hands often.
- You can considerably reduce the chance of spreading by keeping at least 1.5 meters away from others.
- An infected person infects two to three others on average. Precautions are necessary to contain this.
- The vast majority of patients have mild (flu-like) complaints.
- Almost all deaths involve the elderly or other vulnerable persons, such as heart, lung or diabetes patients. If everyone complies with the measures, this reduces their risks.
- Read here what precautions you should take.
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