The nightmare of the pandemic reappears in several European countries and affects especially those with a low percentage of vaccinated people or where there are no controls and restrictions of any kind. Three examples: the Great Britain which breaks through the quota of fifty thousand daily infections: the Russia, with over a thousand deaths daily and forced to close the business for nine days: and the Latvia, back in lockdown. So much so that Italy, crossed by controversies and demonstrations for an application of the Green pass that has no equal in Europe, is taken as an example, especially for the consequences on the economic front. In the past five months, economic growth has had the biggest improvement over any other G7 country, the Financial Times wrote, which also ties the result to a robust vaccination program and the introduction of the Green pass.
Green pass and vaccines for Italy
The distinction between the countries that are falling back into the pandemic, with an inevitable slowdown in the economic recovery, and those that are containing it are the vaccines and related controls, starting from green certification to distancing and masks. And Italy – where, unlike Great Britain, masks are still mandatory indoors and, unlike the rest of Europe, you can’t even enter the workplace without the Green pass – has disappeared from the ranking of 15 Countries with more Covid cases.
The case most similar to Italy is represented by Greece, where there is no mandatory Green pass in the workplace but, whether it is public or private, unvaccinated workers are obliged to have a double weekly swab, to be done at their own expense. An undoubted incentive for vaccination, such as the Italian Green Certificate.
Great Britain: surge in infections but no restrictions
The numbers of Great Britain remain worrying: on 21 October the infections went over 50 thousand (52,009 to be exact), a record since July when they had also reached 60 thousand. The barrier effect attributed to the vaccine contains the number of deaths which however remains high (115). In the UK, two thirds of the population (66.6%) is fully vaccinated. Despite appeals from the scientific community and some experts in the health sector, Prime Minister Boris Johnson does not believe it is necessary for now to move to the so-called plan B on Covid, namely the restoration of the restrictions abolished on July 19. Masks remain non-mandatory, and the government has limited itself to recommending wearing them in all the busiest public places, starting with the subway and other means of transport.
Russia: record of victims and lockdown for Moscow
The most critical situation is recorded in the countries of Eastern Europe, starting with Russia: the latest figure (Friday 22 October) recorded 37,141 new cases of Covid-19 and 1,064 deaths caused by the disease, the maximum since the beginning of the epidemic. A figure that is also explained by the low percentage of vaccinated: only one third of the population (32,5%) is fully immunized. The Green pass, introduced in Moscow during the summer, is no longer required: there was therefore free access to restaurants, bars, swimming pools, theaters, cinemas, museums. The rule of using the mask indoors is poorly respected.