Belgium despite high vaccination coverage among Corona leaders in Western Europe

Europe is in for an exciting few months. Now as temperatures drop, people gather more indoors and many restrictive measures have been lifted, the coronavirus is happy again. It finds ideal conditions for faster spread among the population.

Politicians and health experts have been predicting for weeks that infections, hospitalizations and deaths will increase again in the fall and winter. At the same time, they hope that vaccination campaigns in recent months will prevent the health system from collapsing again and are counting on a high vaccination rate to protect the region from new drastic shutdown scenarios as in 2020 and spring 2021.

But can the return of far-reaching corona measures, such as wearing a mouth mask in stores and schools, be prevented? The question now arises that the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control dashboard shows that of all Western European countries with high vaccination coverage, Ireland and Belgium experience the fastest increase in the number of infections and hospitalizations (see graph). Although 92 percent of Irish adults and 86 percent of Belgians over the age of 18 have been fully vaccinated. In our country, there are 280.6 new infections per 100,000 people

The conclusion from this that vaccines are useless is to be very rude. Because infections, hospitalizations and deaths are much lower than they were last spring compared to the waves that swept across countries in 2020. Many of them are also getting less serious disease.

How do other European countries deal with it? Overview.

Corona trends in the Netherlands are no more rosy than they are in Belgium. The government is particularly concerned about the rapid increase in the number of hospital admissions. That’s why Mark Rutte’s team asked the Outbreak Management Team, a government advisory body, to make recommendations for additional measures during this week. The resigned government may announce amendments next Tuesday.

The Netherlands has loosened up considerably in recent weeks. Since September 25, the one and a half meter rule has been abolished. Face masks have been overused for some time. However, the Corona Pass is mandatory in the food industry, in the art and culture sector, at festivals and professional sports competitions. Unlike Belgium, the Netherlands kept discos and nightclubs closed.

France has managed to contain the virus for the time being. The vaccination rate was greatly enhanced by the introduction of the Corona Corridor. Anyone wishing to go to a cafe or restaurant, soak up the culture, visit the sights, or travel long distances by plane, train or bus, must present this certificate. Additionally, the mouth mask obligation still applies in stores. In an effort to stay ahead of the virus, the government is extending a state of health emergency until July 31, 2022, allowing it to keep measures in place until then.

The state of health emergency in Germany is in effect until November 25. This makes it possible to request a Corona permit when visiting the food industry, hairdresser or beauty salon. You must wear a face mask in enclosed public places. Only a medical mask is allowed to be worn in stores and on public transport. There are also restrictions on the number of families that may congregate. Although the Corona numbers are also high in Germany, the federal government does not intend to ask Parliament to extend the state of emergency for the time being. She still believes in the benefit of the corona pass.

In the Grand Duchy, a quarter of the adult population has not yet been vaccinated. In an effort to boost the tingling rate, the government will expand the use of the Corona Corridor from November 1. This is necessary when visiting the food industry or discotheque, during leisure activities and in some stores. The employer can also enter it in the workplace. A mouth mask remains mandatory on public transport and in shops from the age of six.

When the coronavirus reached Europe in the spring of 2020, Italy, Spain and Portugal were on the front line. Today their aura stats are among the best in Europe. The high vaccination rate is certainly no stranger to this. Perhaps better weather conditions help, too, allowing southern Europe to meet more outdoors. At the same time, Rome, Madrid and Lisbon have made fewer efforts to scale back Corona measures in recent months. Mouth mask adherence remained largely intact. Portugal and Italy are also eagerly using the Corona Corridor.

With 80 to 90 percent of the adult population now fully vaccinated, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark have resumed “normal life” in recent weeks. Local authorities can reuse mouth masks or corona corridors in the event of an outbreak, but the measures are no longer in place at the national level. At the moment, it seems that Scandinavian countries are quite successful in living with the virus, because the number of infections is still limited.

The situation in Eastern Europe is even more alarming. In Romania, Latvia, Estonia, Croatia and Slovenia, the number of infections and hospitalizations increased significantly. States pay for low vaccination coverage. Some governments are again restricting freedom of movement. Latvia has been in a tight lockdown since the end of last week. In Romania, schools are closed and masks are again mandatory everywhere. Other governments in the region, such as Poland, are not ruling out similar interventions in the coming days.