New restrictions on Covid-19 are being introduced across Europe amid an increase in cases and a slow vaccination.
In Italy, one of the worst-hit countries in Europe during the first wave of the pandemic last spring, the government imposed a nationwide exclusion during the Easter holidays and put operations in most of the country.
As of Monday, more than half of Italy will be placed in the “red” level, the highest level of contamination.
In 11 regions, including Lazio, where the capital Rome is located, Italians will only be allowed to leave their homes to go to a grocery store, pharmacy, doctor or for health or work reasons. In a deja vu of last spring, they also need to bring along a self-certification form that indicates where they are going, why and where.
All public places, including restaurants, bars, gyms, swimming pools, theaters and theaters, will be closed.
In Italy, infections rose by ten percent last week compared to the previous week, and officials warned that the situation was deteriorating as highly contagious variants gained ground.
“The application of stricter measures and the increasing increase in the number of vaccines make us think that the numbers will improve already in the second half of spring (infection),” Health Minister Roberto Speranza said in an interview with la Repubblica said. But he added that the coming weeks ‘would not be easy at all’.
Download the NBC News app for news and politics
Italy announced its national vaccination plan on Saturday, aiming to vaccinate at least 80 percent of its population by the end of September and administer 500,000 doses per day at full capacity. So far, 6.7 million Italians have received at least one dose of vaccine, with just over 2 million of them receiving the required doses, according to data from the Ministry of Health.
While several European countries, including Ireland and the Netherlands, have suspended use of the AstraZeneca vaccine due to reports from Denmark and Norway that recipients have developed blood clots, Italy’s health regulator said on Sunday that the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine was not not justified.
The reports slow down the explosion of vaccines across the European Union, damaged by dose shortages.
The European Medicines Agency said there was no indication that the events were caused by the vaccination, a view expressed by the World Health Organization on Friday.
AstraZeneca said on Sunday that a review of safety data from people vaccinated with the Covid-19 vaccine showed no evidence of an increased risk of blood clots.
Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Sunday that France must do everything possible to avoid a new closure of the coronavirus, as the country has reported more than 26,000 new cases, which increases the health care system.
The French government has so far resisted the pressure of some health experts to apply a new, third time in light of the increasing case numbers.
France has recorded more than 90,000 deaths since March last year. Intensive care units in the capital Paris have been full since November last year. The government plans to transport about 100 patients by air or special train from the greater Paris region to other cities this week to ease the pressure on hospitals in the capital.
“The situation is not getting better, there are an increasing number of infections and hospitals are heavily burdened with many patients,” Castex said.