The Covid-19 put France on hold for many months.
Now that all the restrictions are lifted, many French people are watching the epidemic in their rear view mirror.
But France is beginning the start of a seventh wave of contamination.
Faced with the upsurge in contamination, the Minister of Health Brigitte Bourguignon asked "the French to put the mask back on transport", out of good citizenship.
We take stock of the different stages of the coronavirus in France.
The 1st wave and the 1st confinement between March and April 2020
The first official cases of Covid-19 in France were announced on January 24, 2020. The first victim, an 80-year-old Chinese tourist, died on February 15 in Paris.
Restaurants, bars and cinemas close on March 14.
Schools and universities two days later.
On March 17 at noon, France is confined.
The second round of municipal elections is postponed, the reforms are suspended.
Controversies swell over the lack of masks, tests and the effectiveness of the antimalarial chloroquine.
The hospital is overwhelmed by the number of cases, particularly in the East and in Ile-de-France.
A peak was reached in April with more than 32,000 people hospitalized for Covid-19 and more than 6,000 patients in critical care.
The 2nd wave and the second confinement in the fall of 2020
In May, a progressive deconfinement begins.
On June 2, Emmanuel Macron announced "the return of happy days".
Movement is no longer restricted.
Schools, bars and restaurants are reopening.
But at the end of August, the epidemic starts again.
Wearing a mask becomes widespread at the start of the school year.
A curfew was introduced on October 17 in the Paris region and in eight metropolises.
On the 30th, Emmanuel Macron announces a new confinement: nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools remain open but teleworking becomes the rule again and non-essential businesses close.
At the height of this wave, the country counted 48,000 positive cases detected per day (calculated as a smoothed average over the last seven days), at the beginning of November, and a peak of 33,000 people hospitalized in mid-November.
The first vaccines arrive in Europe in December.
The “Alpha” wave breaks in April 2021
After being spotted in the United Kingdom, the more contagious "Alpha" variant of the new coronavirus spread rapidly from the beginning of 2021. On March 20, Ile-de-France and Hauts-de-France became the subject to restrictions: non-essential businesses closed, outings limited to 10 km around your home.
These restrictions are extended to all of France on April 3.
Nurseries, schools, colleges and high schools close for three to four weeks.
At the height of the wave in April, the country had just over 30,000 hospitalized patients and 35,000 new cases/day.
The 100,000 dead mark was crossed on April 15.
The “Delta” rebound takes over in August 2021
A rapid decline allows the lifting of restrictions: reopening of shops, terraces and places of culture on May 19, then cafes and restaurants on June 9.
The curfew was completely lifted on June 20.
After a slow start at the start of the year, the pace of vaccination is accelerating: open to over 50s on May 10, then to all adults at the end of May and to over 12s on June 15.
But the rapid progression of the “Delta” variant, which is much more contagious, leads the country to a 4th wave from the end of July to the end of August (more than 20,000 new cases/day and 10,000 hospitalized at the peak).
A new type of restriction was announced on July 12 by Emmanuel Macron: compulsory health pass at the entrance to many places from July/August and compulsory vaccination for caregivers from September 15.
The vaccination pass is essential after a “drilling” wave in the winter of 2021-2022
At the start of the 2021 school year, two-thirds of French people are vaccinated.
But a still very active “Delta” variant and the arrival of winter are causing cases and hospitalizations to start again.
Faced with this 5th “dazzling” wave, Emmanuel Macron announced on November 9 the extension of the vaccination recall campaign to those over 50 and, two weeks later, to those over 18.
In December, the arrival of the ultra-contagious variant Omicron caused contamination to race.
The executive transforms the health pass into a vaccination pass.
The peak of the wave is reached at the end of January, beginning of February with more than 30,000 hospitalizations and 300,000 positive cases / day.
A contained wave in April 2022
In mid-March, the government lifted most of the restrictions: end of the vaccination pass and the compulsory mask (except in health establishments – in transport the mask obligation was lifted in mid-April).
The still high circulation of Omicron brought up, at the beginning of April, positive cases and hospitalizations (up to 140,000 cases/day and 25,000 hospitalizations).
However, for the first time since the start of the epidemic, this rebound has not been accompanied by any significant increase in the number of patients in critical care.
The wave of June, controlled for the moment
A new wave, carried by subvariants of the Omicron family, even more transmissible, appears from mid-June, with more than 54,000 cases/days as of June 24.
But the translation in terms of hospitalizations remains weak and the executive excludes, at this stage, the return to health measures.
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