British and South African variants are gaining ground in France. And if the number of cases continues to increase, more stringent measures could be taken.
More contagious, the variants of coronavirus Covid-19 worry the authorities at the highest point. To date, two variants have been identified in France: one from South Africa, the other from the United Kingdom. The latter has also been identified in at least 60 countries, according to the WHO (World Health Organization).
And this meteoric development raises fears of the shadow of a third confinement.
Guest of the 8 p.m. TV news, on TF1 , this Thursday 21st January, the Minister of Health Olivier Véran gave the latest figures: there are between 200 and 300 cases per day of positive cases for the British variant.
If the situation evolves with more variants and pressure on our hospitals, we would have to take more stringent measures.
Confinement soon?
Will we have stricter measures including a third confinement. Even if the Minister of Health tends to reassure the French, ”where we have put in place the curfew, there has been rather a drop in epidemic pressure, even if it is still too early to say. it was effective ”, the shadow of a third confinement looms.
La 🇫🇷 lutte contre la propagation des variants :
– Contrôles renforcés à nos frontières
– Mesures sanitaires strictes avec un couvre-feu strict
– Renforcement de nos capacités à traquer le virus. @TF1LeJT pic.twitter.com/3NlchVIwdH— Olivier Véran (@olivierveran) January 21, 2021
What could he look like then? Difficult to launch scenarios even if one thing is certain: the schools will not close. “The education of our children is crucial” insisted the minister.
Read also: Covid-19 variants: why it is not recommended to use certain fabric masks
What about vaccines?
While the British variant can be neutralized by the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the South African variant appears to be showing resistance. Indeed, it risks partially escaping the protection of vaccines.
A study by South African researchers posted online Wednesday, and not yet evaluated by other scientists, goes further. It concludes that the South African variant as a whole “is largely resistant to neutralizing antibodies elicited in response to infection by previously circulating strains”.
To respond to the threat of these variants, the European Union had to agree, in the evening, on strengthening and harmonisation of border controls and tests.
“It’s a race against time, loose Olivier Veran, we must stop the spread of the virus”.
