After six straight weeks of increase, “the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 decreased throughout the territory” the week of July 11 to 17, observes Public health Francethis Friday, in his weekly update. The health agency nevertheless specifies that this seventh wave is still “still at a very high level”, with around 90,000 new daily cases.
In hospitals, the decline is also evident, but new admissions (over 7,900) and new admissions to critical care (around 740) have remained at high levels, especially for the over 70s.
25,000 people died in the last five months
On the death side, they continued to increase in the hospital, with 590 the past week. For five months, 25,000 people have died from Covid, but these deaths “have passed into a form of oblivion”, noted Jean-François Delfraissy, Thursday, during the final press briefing of the Scientific Council.
If he judged that “we are quite reassured now” about the continuation of the current wave, he warned that “the population movements linked to the holidays” could cause “a fairly strong tension” at the hospital in the areas. resorts where the workforce is “not totally adapted”.
The current wave is carried by sub-variants of Omicron, notably BA.5, which is now the majority. Three cases of a closely watched new member of the Omicron family, BA.2.75 -nicknamed “Centaur”-, have been detected in France (in Martinique, in Occitanie, in the Grand Est).
Vaccination coverage that “remains insufficient”
Stressing that vaccination coverage “remains insufficient”, especially among the elderly, Public Health France called for it to be accentuated. Only 39.5% of people aged 80 and over and 45.4% of eligible nursing home residents had received the second booster dose by July 18.
“Many of our elderly patients in conventional hospitalization are still in difficult situations, often decompensating for their pathologies because of the Covid (…); it’s a shame when the vaccine is effective in reducing severe forms, ”noted geriatrician and member of the scientific council Olivier Guérin on Thursday.
In a summer season conducive to an increase in the transmission of the virus, the health agency also recalled the need for isolation in the event of infection and respect for barrier gestures. In the event of very hot weather, the ventilation of enclosed places must be limited to the cooler hours of the day, she recommended.