On Monday, Laurent Wauquiez announced a "huge logistics operation" to screen the population of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in a month.

On BFM TV, Tuesday, the Minister of Health replied that this approach, which was not communicated to the health authorities, was not relevant.

The Minister of Health Olivier Véran qualified Tuesday as "of effect of announcement" the decision of the president LR of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region Laurent Wauquiez to propose a massive campaign of free tests to the eight million inhabitants of his territory before Christmas.

Neither the director of the Regional Health Agency (ARS), nor the prefect "have been informed, nor (made) aware", said Olivier Véran on BFM TV.

The issue of follow-up after the test

"What is important is not to test people, it is to be sure that once tested, we are able to shelter them to prevent them from contamination", continued the minister. of Health.

"Because if not, what are you going to do? You go test people and you tell them 'call your doctor, do you do it'? That's not possible." 

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Monday, in an interview with several local newspapers, Laurent Wauquiez judged that "the current screening campaigns are not important enough" and announced a "huge logistical operation" of screening scheduled between December 16 and 23 in his region, specifying that a first order of two million tests had been placed.

He then said that the LRA had been informed of the operation. 

Most affected region

A peak of 7,000 hospitalizations was reached this weekend in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, the most affected region of the territory, which has forced the authorities to organize more than 100 transfers of patients to hospitals in other regions since the beginning. of this second wave in October.

Olivier Véran traveled to Lyon on Monday to attend the departure by plane of two patients for La Rochelle. 

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Friday, the ARS of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes announced the deployment in the region of 552,000 rapid antigenic tests, distributed in the twelve departments, according to their demography and according to the epidemiological situation of the territory.