• Direct: follow the coronavirus crisis to the minute
  • The Government's motives: the report on phase 1 of Madrid
  • Explanations. Ayuso challenges Sánchez to explain "who decides" and "with what criteria" to lead "Madrid to ruin"
  • Second rejection. Sánchez leaves Madrid in a "flexible" Phase 0

"I don't know what else had to be done" , "we have not received any criticism from the Ministry" and "there are autonomies that are behind and have passed". The Government of Isabel Díaz Ayuso, in the voice of its Minister of Health, Enrique Ruiz-Escudero, still does not understand why the capital will continue in Phase 0 next Monday. Madrid has done "all the duties" requested by the central executive, the counselor has assured this Saturday, "the data firmly supports" the advance and the capital "cannot wait another day" on its way to de-escalation.

But, what reasons and with what solid numbers does Madrid argue that it should go to Phase 1?

In broad lines , the regional executive maintains that health care data ensures progress, that the measures applied support them and that, furthermore, stagnation would be a "comparative grievance" with respect to other autonomous communities. We detail it in parts.

Ayuso challenges Sánchez to say "who decides" and with "what criteria" to lead "Madrid to ruin"

Care data

Regarding the first reason, healthcare data, Madrid relies on the drop in cases with respect to the maximum peak that was reached on March 31 and April 1. He says that the number of hospitalized patients has dropped by 86% and the number of necessary hospital beds by 91.61%. And in the case of ICUs, the sick have fallen by 73% and the number of beds by 79.61%.

The pending patients and admission to the ER registered a maximum peak of 2,654 and, this May 13, it was only 164, 93.82% less. Regarding Primary Care, the number of patients in home follow-up has also dropped by 90%, from 24,081 to 2,244 daily.

In addition, confirmed cases (with positive PCR) that reached 3,300 a day, in the last week have been 150 on average.

Another reason given by the Ayuso Government is the availability of beds . The criteria of the Ministry is to have between 37 and 40 beds of acute patients per 10,000 inhabitants, which would be a maximum of 24,750, and Madrid has grown to have 25,000 without having the capacity to expand Ifema and medicalized hotels. Now, 2,076 beds are occupied, only 8.3% of the maximum peak .

As for ICUs , where between 1.5 and 2 beds are required for every 10,000 inhabitants, the region has 1,350 (10 more than necessary, according to the central government) and has reached 1,942. Now, there are 358 employed, 18.4% of the maximum.

For the Minister of Health, "health response is proven" and health indicators "have a trend of permanent decline at all levels, sustained in weeks."

Measures applied

The second strong reason with which the regional Executive argues the move to Phase 1, rejected for the second consecutive week by the Government of Pedro Sánchez, is hidden in the measures applied in the detection of cases, in the protection of health and citizens and in the strategic plans for a return to normality.

Madrid maintains that it has strengthened the control of suspicious cases through the implementation of a System for the detection and monitoring of infections and contacts, coordinated by Public Health, which includes, in addition to all public and private hospitals, Primary Care and Summa.

This was the "only point of improvement" requested by the Ministry to change phases, according to the Community, in the previous rejection. Specifically, the central government requested "to have more secured and functioning the Primary Care system so that any suspected case can be diagnosed" and that it should take "a week rolled". A system, says Madrid, had been operating for eight days the day it was requested to change phase.

The region has expanded the capacity to carry out daily PCRs to more than 11,000 and is in a position to carry out more than 15,000, although they are studying reaching 20,000, according to the Ayuso government. And it has also started the extension of the contracts for Primary Care and Summa -the main managers of performing the PCR- and indicates that there is capacity to carry out tests 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

According to the data offered by the Community of Madrid, from May 11 to 14 a total of 13,731 PCRs were carried out in public and private hospital laboratories for suspects and 763 were positive, 5.56%. And since last Monday, 6,600 PCRs have been carried out in Primary Care , about 1,300 daily, of which only 58 have tested positive, said counselor Ruiz-Escudero this Saturday.

The Ayuso government also ensures that it has enough material to protect health professionals and citizens , as it has acquired more than 500 tons to have a 45-day stock of personal protective equipment.

The Community of Madrid also indicates that it has strategic plans for a return to normality. Specifically, a reorganization plan in public and private hospitals and in Primary Care and an ambulatory care plan in Primary and Hospital Care. And for a possible rebound, it has an elasticity plan in public and private hospitals that allows it to triple the capacity of the Emergency Department, double the hospitalization and triple the number of ICUs.

Tort against other communities

Lastly, the regional government points out that not going to phase 1 is a "comparative grievance" with respect to other Autonomous Communities, since there are some regions or provinces that have advanced with worse data than the capital.

Thus, the Community of Madrid puts on the table that it is one of the three regions with the most patients cured per 100,000 inhabitants and that it exceeds Asturias, the Balearic Islands, Extremadura, Aragon, Cantabria and Navarra , all in Phase 1.

In addition, on May 8, when it was announced that the CCAA were passing phase, Madrid did not advance with an incidence of 57.15 cases accumulated per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days, and Navarra and La Rioja did, with a incidence of 64.96 and 63.76, respectively.

And on May 14 -day after requesting a new phase change-, Madrid had a cumulative incidence of 38.84, while Navarra , in Phase 1, had one of 44.33, and in La Rioja the rate of patients with positive CRP (1,267 per 100,000 inhabitants) was higher than that of the Community of Madrid (985 per 100,000 inhabitants).

The regional government also notes that, according to the first wave of Serological Study JAN COVID the Ministry of Health, the provinces of Cuenca (13.5) and Guadalajara (10.9), both in Phase 1, have an infection rate higher or similar to that of Madrid (11.3).

And regarding the case fatality rate , regions or provinces that have already advanced in de-escalation such as Navarra, Zaragoza, Guipúzcoa, Álava, Asturias, Vizcaya, Teruel, Cáceres or La Rioja also surpass Madrid.

In accordance with the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Madrid
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  • Covid 19
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