- The Prime Minister and the Minister of Health took stock of the coronavirus epidemic this Sunday.
- They returned to the progression of the virus and France's strategy to deal with it and explained the tracks envisaged during the deconfinement.
To know precisely what their life will look like after May 11, the French will have to wait a little longer. And this, until the finalization of the deconfinement project still in preparation and which will have to be presented by the Prime Minister within fifteen days.
But already several tracks were detailed by Edouard Philippe and the Minister of Health Olivier Véran this Sunday at the end of the day, during a televised speech of more than 2 hours, intended to take stock of the evolution of the epidemic of coronaviruses in France and the measures under way and envisaged to deal with them. 20 Minutes summarizes the main announcements to remember at the end of this intervention.
Containment works against the epidemic
“We are living in an unprecedented crisis, a very intense health crisis. This health crisis is not over, ”launched the Prime Minister in the preamble. But if the virus continues to claim victims every day in France, its spread is nonetheless slowed down on the national territory and in Overseas given the figures presented this evening by Edouard Philippe and Jérôme Salomon, director general of the Health.
Since the start of the epidemic, Covid-19 has killed 19,718 people in total, including 395 people in the past 24 hours. But for the eleventh consecutive day, a negative balance is recorded in intensive care (-89 patients in intensive care in one day). For the fifth day, the balance is also negative for people hospitalized (-29). “The vast majority of the French have followed the instructions given to them. Like all of you, I have observed a drastic reduction in the number of trips to shops, grocery stores, transport stations, offices, ”said Edouard Philippe.
Compliance with these rules made it possible, in particular, according to the Prime Minister, to avoid exceeding the capacity for admission to intensive care, which had gone from 5,000 beds before the crisis to 10,500 currently. At the height of the epidemic, "we reached the figure of 7,100 people hospitalized in intensive care," he said. This figure has decreased and is around 5,800 today ”. Another significant datum, the "RO", in other words the number of people infected by a Covid patient is 0.6 today. “Ten patients infect only six new people. This suggests that the epidemic is slowing sharply, "said the Prime Minister.
Visits again authorized in Ehpad from Monday
Confined well before the rest of the population, residents of Ehpad will be able to see their loved ones, announced this Sunday the Minister of Health. In these retirement homes, nearly half of which have reported proven or suspected cases of coronavirus in recent weeks, "we will allow, under certain conditions, visitation rights," said Oliver Véran.
This will be possible from Monday, under the responsibility of the management of the establishments and at the request of the residents. They can receive a maximum of two people at the same time, without any physical contact being authorized. Supervised access rights will also be set up in centers welcoming people with disabilities.
Towards a resumption of scheduled hospital activities
Due to the epidemic of coronavirus and the fear of being infected, messages that are sometimes difficult to understand by health authorities, and the cessation of multiple hospital activities (excluding Covid), there has been a worrying overall decrease in attendance of specialist doctors and general practitioners. Their activity decreased by 60% and 40% respectively, according to Olivier Véran, who expressed the need for particular vigilance regarding access to care.
“There has been a drop in vaccination and cancer screening. This is serious, it is a situation that should alert us, "he added, reminding people with chronic illnesses of the need to consult their usual doctors. He also indicated that a reflection was underway for a “gradual resumption of activities planned in public and private health establishments”, since these examinations, care and interventions will not impact the drugs and the personnel dedicated to resuscitation.
A major economic crisis to come
"The economic risk associated with this health crisis is considerable," repeated Edouard Philippe, stressing that France is preparing to experience, like the rest of the world, a recession never equaled since 1945. We must expect according to the Prime Minister to growth of - 8% in 2020, "which means that national wealth will contract". The economic consequences of the epidemic on the country's activity are already considerable.
Industrial activity in particular fell by 43%, construction by 88% and the drop in activities in cafes, shops and restaurants is close to 90%. To support employees and businesses, several measures have been taken. Among them, 24 billion euros are and will be allocated to short-time working, from which 9 million employees of nearly 700,000 companies benefit today. Almost half of the companies and employees in the region. The state must also allocate 300 billion euros (including 18 billion already guaranteed) in support of corporate bank loans.
Our file on the coronavirus
What avenues for deconfinement?
“Our life after May 11 will not be our life before confinement. Not immediately, and probably not for a long time. We will learn to organize our collective life with this virus. It will be our next challenge and we will get there, ”said Edouard Philippe, whose government is working on a specific plan which should be presented to the public within two weeks.
Among the avenues mentioned, wearing a mask could be made compulsory in public transport during deconfinement. Teleworking should be the norm in companies wherever possible. A sensitive subject on which opinions diverge within the population, as among scientists and those involved in political life, the reopening of schools remains unclear. "They will not open everywhere on May 11 and will not work everywhere as before the confinement," said Olivier Véran.
Our file on the Covid-19
Several scenarios are being studied to allow students to return to class "under conditions of health security". As of May 11, businesses will be authorized to reopen gradually, apart from cafes and restaurants, for which the date of resumption of activity remains unknown. Finally, there should be no prolonged confinement for the elderly and those at risk. "We are going to appeal to everyone's individual responsibility," concluded the Minister of Health.
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- Edouard Philippe
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