France: "emergency reconfiguration must be anticipated", warns Jean Castex

"An emergency reconfiguration must be anticipated", warns in his report on the deconfinement published Monday May 11 the high official Jean Castex, by calling to preserve the "reversibility of the measures" in the event of resurgence of the epidemic of coronavirus.

"In the absence, in the short term, of vaccine or curative solution, the French population remains vulnerable to a resumption of the epidemic", underlines in a document of 68 pages Jean Castex, who had been charged by the Prime Minister with coordinate the deconfinement strategy started on Monday.

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The "effects" of such a revival "would be particularly damaging for an already tried society and, more particularly, for the nursing staff", warns Jean Castex, whose work has guided the government's choices in terms of deconfinement at the school, in transport or in companies. 

Be extra vigilant during deconfinement

In this report, made public on Monday, the senior civil servant and mayor of Prades, a town located in the Pyrénées-Orientales, insists on the "very high level of vigilance" which must be observed in this first stage of deconfinement.

"The possibility of reversibility of the measures must therefore always be able to be offered and the possibility of an emergency reconfiguration must remain in the minds and be anticipated by the public authorities", he urges. 

>> To read also: Covid-19: who is Jean Castex, the "Monsieur déconfinement" of the French government?

For example, Jean Castex recommends a very "gradual" disarmament "of the intensive care beds in the hospital, whose capacity had been increased during the crisis. And their reopening must be able to take place "very quickly (within 24, 48 or 72 hours depending on the beds) to cope with a new influx of patients".

Similarly, if travel is permitted again under certain conditions, "the prefects may reinstate restrictions locally" at any time.

Suggestions in the event of new containment 

In the event of reconfiguration, Jean Castex already calls to "provide for social and economic support systems of the nature of those put in place during the confinement period", but also to "better prevent psycho-social risks of containment, now better known. "

"We are on phase 1 of # deconfinement. We are taking measures which remain restrictive but it is a progressive device which will allow us to observe, over 3 weeks, what is happening and draw up a balance sheet to determine the next step." @ JeanCASTEX # COVID19 pic.twitter.com/5y93FRUkl7

Pending the opening "at the beginning of June" of a "second phase, depending on the evolution of the epidemic", Jean Castex insists on "the implication" of the French who "will respect the barrier gestures and the distancing measures , will mobilize to make masks and will try to wear them as much as possible. "

The State, for its part, should "rationalize" its system by "merging" the various existing crisis cells. Jean Castex also suggests that a "citizen consultation" be organized on deconfinement, a point to which the executive has not yet acted.

"Massive use of telework"

He also asked that "businesses and administrations continue and encourage the massive use of telework at least until the end of June", in order to limit the use of public transport and interactions at work.

>> Read also: Deconfinement in France: a health protocol specifies the new rules in companies

"Maintaining entry restrictions at the external borders of the European area is necessary to avoid a new epidemic", pleads Jean Castex, noting that "this risk (...) occurs in several foreign states, which are nevertheless prepared for a gradual lifting of containment measures ".

At the head of a team of 18 people, Jean Castex underlines having multiplied "direct contacts" with "counterparts" in several European countries. "They made me realize that I was not the only one to doubt and wonder about the complexity of the situation," he slips.

With AFP

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