EPIDEMIC: Relive Olivier Véran’s press conference this Thursday, talking about coronavirus, hospitals, mutations and curfew
- The Minister of Health, Olivier Véran held a press conference this Thursday at 2 p.m.
- He took stock, the day after the health defence council, on the epidemic situation in France faced with the increase in cases of contamination and the appearance of mutations, more contagious and more deadly.
- The 6 p.m. curfew, put in place almost two weeks ago, “does not sufficiently curb the spread of the virus,” government spokesman Gabriel Attal admitted. “Different scenarios” are being studied, ranging from “maintaining the current framework” to “very tight confinement”.
2:02 p.m .: Olivier Véran begins the press conference
2:03 pm: “I want to give you the information transparently so you can understand the issues of the moment”, begins the Minister of Health
2:03 p.m .: Olivier Véran takes stock of the figures
“We are not in an epidemic wave when the virus is spreading exponentially like last spring and it takes everything in its path. But it is circulating at a high level and we are on a rising plateau, which is increasing by 10% per week, ”explains Olivier Véran.
2:05 pm: “The virus circulates at a high level and circulates a little faster every week”
2:06 pm: “The curfew at 6 pm is effective”, but its “effect is fading”
“The 6 pm curfew is effective.” It “made it possible to prevent us from experiencing the same epidemic wave as our neighbours” but “this effect is fading and is not enough to reduce the virus”, recognizes Olivier Véran.
2:08 pm: “The sanitary pressure and the hospital tension are increasing”
In hospitals, “there are now more serious patients than patients who recover,” worries Olivier Véran.
2:09 p.m .: Two differences with the epidemic situation of last fall
According to the minister, there are two notable differences with the current epidemic situation and that of this fall: the launch of the vaccination campaign and the appearance of new variants, more contagious and more deadly.
2:11 p.m .: “Mutations of the virus are more contagious than classic Covid-19”
“Despite all our efforts, the mutations are actively circulating in France”, deplores Olivier Véran, indicating that the mutations affected 500 French people per day at the beginning of January, against “more than 2,000 patients per day currently”.
2:13 pm: Olivier Véran fears “an epidemic within the epidemic”
“The curfew and all the measures are certainly useful but probably insufficient. Olivier Véran compared the variants to “new viruses calling for new responses to protect us”, which raise fears “an epidemic within the epidemic”, which could strike “very quickly and very hard if we do nothing”.
2.15 pm: “The French have been showing for almost a year a remarkable spirit of solidarity and responsibility, we must still hold on”
2:16 pm: “We have always acted to preserve the health of the French and the French economy in parallel. (…) We are not unaware of the real psychological impact and that we follow on a daily basis ”
2:21 pm: Intra-family contamination “is difficult to avoid”
“There is a contamination which is difficult to avoid, it is the intra-family one. (…) There are contaminations that are linked to professional activity, ”said Olivier Véran, questioned about the places of contamination. “There is more contamination in carpooling when you do not wear a mask than in public transport,” he added, recalling the importance of the mask.
2:23 pm: “An epidemic wave” without a curfew
“If there were no curfew, we would not have a plateau as we know today, we would have an epidemic wave”, estimates the minister, recalling that the curfew at 6 pm has ” clearly an impact ”but“ is not sufficient in the face of mutations ”.
