The days pass and are alike. For the past two weeks, France has been confined to trying to stop the spread of the coronavirus, the number of victims of which is constantly increasing. According to a latest report on Saturday, 2,314 people died in France. Monday, the French therefore begin their third week of confinement, extended, for now, until April 15 by the government.
If the ban on leaving your home except for medical reasons, to go to work or to do your shopping is maintained, a few points will change. Europe 1 takes stock of what awaits you for this new week.
200 euros fine in the event of repeated breaches of confinement
The images show a France emptied of its inhabitants, confined to their homes. However, some recalcitrant people continue to come out despite the measures imposed by the government. A flaw punished with a fine of 135 euros to which will now be added one of 200 euros in the event of repeated breaches of confinement within fifteen days, according to a decree published in the Official Journal on Sunday. A sum which amounts to 450 euros in the event of an increase and if four violations are found within 30 days, the offense can then be punished, in particular, by six months' imprisonment and a 3,750 fine.
>> LIVE - Coronavirus: follow the evolution of the situation
Individual isolation of each resident in nursing homes
As the number of deaths caused by the coronavirus increases in the Ehpad, Olivier Véran announced Saturday, at a press conference held alongside Edouard Phillipe, new measures to try to protect a particularly fragile population against the 'epidemic. This notably involves setting up individual isolation for each resident in the 7,000 nursing homes in France.
But also by the destocking, every day, of 500,000 surgical masks for the staff of these establishments, and by priority screening tests for this same staff. The Minister of Health also called on people working in nursing homes to make as few trips as possible "to take the least risk of them coming back with the virus".
New rules for funerals
This is a delicate point in the midst of a health crisis: the question of the funeral on which Edouard Philippe spoke on Friday evening. The Prime Minister announced that relatives could now see the face of the deceased. Even if the ceremonies are always very small (less than 20 people, who must respect the barrier measures), the High Council of Public Health has indeed relaxed the rules of beer. A decision that did not fail to arouse the incomprehension of professionals in the sector, who fear an increased risk of contamination.
More masks and more beds for hospitals
Edouard Philippe and Olivier Véran also announced this weekend an increase in the equipment made available to health professionals who are fighting against the epidemic. A subject that has been controversial for several weeks, France lacking masks and resuscitation beds.
Regarding this first point, Olivier Véran said that "more than a billion" had been ordered, particularly from China. "A narrow and intensive air bridge between France and China has been set up in order to facilitate the entry of masks into our territory," he added, recalling that France needs 40 million masks per week.
>> READ ALSO - Masks, tests, confinement: what to remember from the announcements of Edouard Philippe
For resuscitation beds, the government wants to increase the number of "14 to 14,500", against 5,000 initially, to cope with the influx of patients. No timetable has yet been set.
The Minister of Health also spoke about the tests for coronavirus, which are also lacking. He thus assured that France was going to go up to speed with "50,000 classic tests" per day by the end of April, to which will be added "more than 100,000" rapid tests per day "in June".
Chloroquine may be prescribed in some cases
On the subject of debate: chloroquine. This drug against malaria which feeds as much hope as controversy, the professor in microbiology Didier Raoult assuring that one of its derivatives, hydroxychloroquine, has an effectiveness in the treatment of coronavirus when it is associated with an antibiotic. If the medical community does not manage to find a consensus around the potential discovery of this controversial scientist, the Minister of Health has already published a decree which broadens the rules for prescribing hydroxychloroquine.
This treatment can now "be prescribed for patients who are hospitalized and oxygen-dependent, that is to say that they need oxygen to breathe", says doctor Jimmy Mohamed on Europe 1, specifying however that, " if you don't have any severity criteria "it’s always useless to ask your doctor to prescribe it or to go to a pharmacy to get it.
The use of foreign doctors for overseas
Worried to see the wave of the coronavirus surge without being able to face it, the Overseas will now be able to receive the help of foreign doctors, like Cuban doctors, with diplomas outside the European Union, according to a decree which should be published next week .
These territories are currently less affected than France, with a total of nearly 550 cases and three deaths, but have more fragile health systems raising fears of a health disaster.
CORONAVIRUS ESSENTIALS
> Paid leave, RTT, sick leave: what changes the state of health emergency
> What do we know about chloroquine, the treatment that is debating?
> What to do if you are sick, but not coronavirus?
> Why you will have to be patient to be reimbursed for a canceled trip
> Homemade bread, short circuits ... Our solutions to continue to eat well during confinement
> Sex: how to manage abstinence during confinement?
"Ephemeral contact points" in shopping centers for victims of domestic violence
On Saturday, the Secretary of State for Gender Equality, Marlène Schiappa, finally announced that "ephemeral support points" will be installed in shopping centers to accommodate women victims of domestic violence. The confinement in fact makes associations fear an increase in violence against women. "Confinement is a collective test that strikes the family and personal history of each person, the situation can escalate at any time when you live with a violent person," said the Secretary of State.