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On July 19, the English lived to see the longed-for “day of freedom”. Lifting almost all restrictions comes at a time when Great Britain has the most new infections in the world. Experts warn that they may reach up to 200. a day, England’s chief doctor warns of trouble, media writes about a social experiment. Boris Johnson himself says it is “the right time” to get back to normal, but urges people to “stick to the rules”.
- The long awaited “day of freedom” was announced on July 19 – the transition to the final stage of recovery from the lockdown and the lifting of almost all restrictions
- Already, the number of new infections is around 50, at the height of the third wave it may be as much as 200, and every day, 2 people may go to hospitals. patients with COVID-19
- According to Johnson, summer is the best time to lift restrictions and return to normal life
- However, the prime minister calls for caution, caution and vaccination against COVID-19 if someone has not already done so
- More current information can be found on the Onet homepage.
The number of infections is skyrocketing and England is lifting restrictions
“On Monday, Boris Johnson will put the citizens of England at the center of an experiment that will show how well a densely populated country with increasing coronavirus outbreaks is coping with lifting restrictions,” wrote CNN’s Luke McGee on July 18. The author points out that the British prime minister takes a huge risk by lifting restrictions in England ».
Let us recall that on July 19, the awaited “day of freedom” was announced, that is, the transition to the final stage of exiting the lockdown, which in practice means lifting almost all restrictions and returning to relative normality. As of that day, face masks are no longer required (although the government still recommends them in crowded and confined spaces), there will be no more restrictions in clubs, concerts, theaters, sports events or for guests at weddings or funerals. These are just some of the changes made.
All of this is happening as Britain is experiencing its third epidemic wave and new infections are rising, reaching the highest daily rates in the world. For example, on Saturday, July 17, 54,5 thousand were recorded in the UK. infections, a day later over 48 thousand. Fortunately, these numbers do not translate into increases in deaths, but the UK’s chief physician, prof. Chris Whitty cautions, “We shouldn’t underestimate the fact that we can get into trouble again surprisingly quickly.”
Source: https://covid19.who.int/region/euro/country/gb
A leading British epidemiologist, Prof. Neil Ferguson. The scientist predicts that at the peak of the third wave, the daily number of infections may reach 200, and every day hospitals may receive 2. patients with COVID-19. Referring to the “day of freedom”, he admitted that when on Monday almost all covid restrictions will be lifted, it is “almost certain” that the levels of 100 will be reached. infections and 1 thousand. hospitalization daily. Over 100 scientists and doctors warned about the effects of the planned lifting of the restrictions in a letter published in early July in “The Lancet”. Scholars have written outright that this decision is a “dangerous and unethical experiment” and that it is premature.
Boris Johnson on lifting restrictions: this is the right time
What was Boris Johnson guided by maintaining the decision to lift the restrictions? Let us add at this point that he is currently in quarantine after contact with an infected minister of health (just like the minister of finance, Rishi Sunak).
He answered the above question in a video released on Sunday, 18 July. The British Prime Minister stressed that despite the spreading of the Delta variant, summer is the best time to lift restrictions and return to normal life. If we don’t do it now, we’ll be opening up in the fall and winter months when the virus has the advantage of cold weather. We will lose a valuable firewall that we get with school holidays. If we don’t do it now, we have to ask ourselves when are we going to do it? This is the right moment, said Boris Johnson.
As he emphasizes, the introduction of restrictions, despite the growing number of cases, is possible thanks to the success of the coronavirus vaccination program. According to the data, 53 percent are fully vaccinated. population of Great Britain (at least 68% received the first dose).
Source: https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations
However, as CNN points out, while vaccines are known to protect against severe COVID-19, there is little evidence that they will prevent the worst effects of so-called long covid in infected people.
- “Debt COVID” will be a “health catastrophe”? Scientists predict that it will affect millions of people
Boris Johnson himself, although he lifts the restrictions, pleads to use the regained freedoms consciously and with caution. – We have to do it carefully. We must remember that this virus, unfortunately, is still there. The number of cases is growing and we can see the extreme contagiousness of the Delta variant – he said in the above-mentioned recording. “ But we have the great consolation and satisfaction that there is no doubt that the vaccination program, the mass vaccination program, has seriously weakened the link between infection and hospitalization, as well as between infection and serious illness and death, ” Johnson argued. all those who have yet to get vaccinated have done so.
Do you want to test your COVID-19 immunity after vaccination? Have you been infected and want to check your antibody levels? See the COVID-19 immunity test package, which you will perform at Diagnostics network points.
Lifting restrictions in England. What could happen?
“The main beneficiary of the easing of restrictions will undoubtedly be the hotel industry, the main sector in the British economy,” notes CNN, pointing out that “going back to something that resembles normal hospitality will lead to more cases”. These fears are confirmed by prof. Simon Clarke, microbiologist at the University of Reading. “Unfortunately, the hospitality industry relies on people to interact and meet, which will increase the number of infections,” he says.
The mathematical models of the epidemic developed at Imperial College London predict that lifting all restrictions could lead to “a significant third wave of hospitalizations and deaths”. While existing vaccines are very effective, we’re not talking 100 percent. and as a result, some people may become ill despite being fully vaccinated. Prof. Clarke explains that “filling hospitals with people sick enough to be hospitalized but not sick enough to be admitted to the intensive care unit” will be a huge burden for the National Health Service (the equivalent of the Polish NFZ). The scientist also reminds that the waiting list for treatment due to a disease other than COVID-19 is a record high, and the above-mentioned situation will complicate everything even more.
Prof. Simon Clarke points out another danger. “With each infection, the likelihood of mutation increases,” he says. The researcher does not think this means that we will immediately see a variant that is completely immune to the vaccines, but believes that “we will see a progressive decline in their effectiveness”.
- Expert: the body of an unvaccinated person is “a factory of new COVID-19 variants”
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