With today’s covid data in Italy, pending numbers relating to the Omicron variant, no other restrictions would be needed. This is the position of Pierpaolo Sileri, Undersecretary of Health, in view of the control room that will meet on Thursday 23 December to evaluate possible measures.
“If the data of Thursday 23 December were what we have today, there would be no need for further restrictions. If we were to have a monstrous increase in infections, at this point we must evaluate the number of hospitalizations, the beds that are occupied. If the data were to be as it is today, I would be cautious with further restrictions“, says Sileri guest on ‘Non stop news’ on Rtl 102.5.
“Italy – he adds – has made progress compared to other countries with the Green Pass and then with the reinforced Green Pass. We still have all the measures: see the outdoor mask reintroduced in the most crowded places. We still have a daily practice that defends us a lot. The virus is fought through vaccines, of course, but there are also many other filters that protect us: hand washing, masks, safety distances, therapies for those who fall ill, the unscrupulous use of tampons “.
“In all these filters, depending on the variant that circulates and how much it circulates, there are cards that we must play with them. I am quite calm, I tell you the truth. We have implemented a progressive strategy and in this moment as you can see we are open. It is a variant that will certainly create problems and following a few more measures is certainly much better than a closure “, he explains again.
On the possibility of swab the vaccinated during the holidays, Sileri invites to wait for the data. “Of course, a greater use of tampons has the advantage of reducing the circulation of the virus as much as possible, identifying possibly positive people who can trigger secondary infections and therefore other outbreaks. We have to wait and evaluate what the prevalence of the Omicron variant will be first and foremost in Italy and then also to borrow what is the experience, unfortunately, of countries that are experiencing an explosion of infections linked to Omicron “, he argues.
“The United Kingdom, for example – continued Sileri – has an impressive amount of infections and let’s say that this fourth wave has been further accelerated as numbers of the Omicron variant, but at the moment it is not expressed with an increase in the number of deaths. although it is true that those who are infected today, perhaps end up in hospital, have to wait a few days to see the outcome of the hospitalization. It is premature to be optimistic or pessimistic about the Omicron variant, even if the initial data say that it is a more contagious variant and probably less bad from the point of view of lethality, but it is still too early. “
As for the possibility of spending the holidays with relatives, friends, diners no vax, Sileri is categorical: “I would desert the appointment, they will not enter my house. I would also spend Christmas day to convince a no vax, if I convince one I know I saved him, so that’s fine. But at home with a family and an elderly aunt, absolutely not. The dinner is best done with vaccinated people. ”
Finally, on the vaccino anti-Covid Novavax, just approved by the EMA, the undersecretary believes that “it addresses those who are reluctant towards mRna vaccines, a new effective option, one more weapon to fight the virus. I hope more people will encounter the idea of vaccination as a salvation against a virus that kills, without doubts “. It is the “fifth vaccine approved in Europe, it is safe and effective and uses an established technology, already in use for other vaccines. It can therefore be useful to convince those who until now have not trusted a new technology such as vaccines to Rna “.