Europe 1 with AFP 12:18 p.m., December 31, 2021
About a month after its appearance in metropolitan France, the Omicron variant of Covid-19 is now the majority among infections in France.
The virus has experienced "significant progression" in recent days, noted Public Health France, which points out that nearly 60% of the tests screened show a profile compatible with this variant.
The Omicron variant is now the majority among Covid-19 infections in France, where the virus has experienced "significant progression" in recent days, Public Health France noted.
"62.4% of the tests screened showed a profile compatible with the Omicron variant" at the beginning of the last week of the year, against 15% the previous one, the public agency found in its last weekly survey, published Thursday evening.
Already majority in the United Kingdom and Portugal
This progression of the variant B.1.1.529, called Omicron, was expected, as it is particularly contagious and had already become the majority in other countries such as the United Kingdom and Portugal.
It has contributed to the current surge in cases, which topped 200,000 per day in France on Wednesday and Thursday.
In total, French hospitals welcome 18,321 Covid patients including 1,922 new admitted only between Wednesday and Thursday, and more than 3,500 patients in critical care.
The Omicron variant first appeared in France on Reunion Island on November 30, then in mainland France in early December.
Acceleration of health measures
Faced with the tidal wave of contamination, the government announced on Monday new health restriction measures such as the compulsory use of telework in the companies concerned or the return of gauges for public events.
The executive also decided to speed up the timetable for the bill transforming the health pass into a vaccination pass, which will be discussed on Monday in the National Assembly and then on January 5 in the Senate with an implementation expected on January 15.
The epidemic has killed a total of 123,552 people in France.