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HEALTH

No return to lockdown but plans for earlier curfew, announces France’s health minister

France will not - as many had feared - be returning to lockdown in the near future, the health minister has announced.

No return to lockdown but plans for earlier curfew, announces France's health minister
Health minister Olivier Véran. Photo: AFP

The worsening Covid-19 situation in several regions and the convening of the country's Defence Council for a meeting had led to widespread speculation that extra health restrictions would shortly be announced.

But instead, health minister Olivier Véran announced on TV channel France 2 that there will be a consultation on extra measures for the worst affected areas only, including a 6pm curfew.

The eastern parts of France are seeing considerably higher numbers than the west of the country, but on a national level case numbers and hospital numbers remain stable.

READ ALSO Which areas of France are worst affected as Covid-19 cases rise?

He said: “We've been on a plateau for about three weeks, with about 15,000 new cases a day. So we are still too high. Hospital pressure remains high. There are significant regional disparities.”

 

However he added that case numbers were not, for the moment, increasing.

Véran said that the Council had therefore decided not to reintroduce lockdown.

Instead a consultation with local authorities in the worst-hit areas has begun and will centre on the introduction of a 6pm-6am curfew. This would be applied only in the worst-affected départements and metropole areas, not on a regional level.

But although there will be no new lockdown, Véran would not be drawn on whether cinemas, theatres and cultural centres could reopen as planned on January 7th, saying that the government wanted to see data showing whether the Christmas holidays have led to a spike in cases.

He said:  “We need to see the effect of Christmas, possibly of the New Year. By the beginning of January we'll see more clearly.”

France's Covid-19 case numbers peaked at 50,000 new cases per day at the end of October, before falling sharply as the second lockdown took effect.

They fell to around 12,000 a day by the end of November, but since then have plateaued and have never got close to the government's target of 5,000 a day.

Reporting of both case numbers and death rates has been a little erratic over the holiday period, but Véran said there had been a slight rise in the last week, but this could be down to a huge spike in testing before the Christmas holidays.

The week before Christmas 3 million people were tested, a 74 percent increase on the previous week and the highest test numbers in Europe. The majority of those getting tested were asymptomatic – in general people getting a test as a precaution before travelling to spend Christmas with friends or relatives.

The French government has been concerned about a 'Christmas effect' of a spike in cases resulting from people travelling and spending the holiday period with friends and relatives, but this effect will only become apparent in next week's data.

Curfew

The government's proposal, which is being discussed with local authorities, is for a 6pm to 6am curfew in badly-hit areas, starting from January 2nd. The rest of the country would remain on the current 8pm to 6am curfew.

 

The curfew would be applied in départements and metropoles – cities and their surrounding suburbs – where case numbers are high, but not to entire regions.

 

There are 20 départements that could potentially be affected by the earlier curfew; Allier, Hautes-Alpes, Alpes-Maritimes, Ardèche, Ardennes, Aube, Doubs, Jura, Marne, Haute-Marne, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, Moselle, Nièvre, Haut-Rhin, Haute-Saône, Saône-et-Loire, Vosges, Yonne and Territoire de Belfort.

What next?

For those areas not affected by the 6pm curfew, the same rules remain in place.

The whole country is under an 8pm to 6am curfew and all bars, restaurants, cafés, gyms, theatres, cinemas, museums and cultural centres remain closed.

However people no longer need a permission form to leave their homes and socialising is again allowed, although gatherings of more than 10 people are not allowed in public places – apart from demonstrations and religious services. People are recommended to keep private social gatherings to a maximum of six people and continue to observe precautions such as social distancing and mask-wearing.

The key date is January 7th – by then the government must decide whether to reopen cultural spaces or not.

Cultural centres such as cinemas, museums and tourist attractions had originally been due to reopen on December 15th, but this was delayed when case numbers failed to fall below 5,000 a day.

The provisional reopen date was given as January 7th, if the health situation allows. Bars, restaurants, cafés and gyms were scheduled to reopen on January 20th, although again this will only happen if the health situation is good enough.

By January 7th the effect, if any, of the Christmas holidays will also be apparent. 

Member comments

  1. Does this child even know what he is doing? He’s like the rest of Macron’s posse no experience and scared stiff of the mob. Being a politician is not about pleasing people to garner votes but about being able to make hard decisions that are unpopular for the good of a country.

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HEALTH

How serious is the threat from dengue fever in France?

As tiger mosquitoes are now present in over 80 percent of mainland France, health authorities are worried that local transmission of tropical diseases, like dengue fever, will increase.

How serious is the threat from dengue fever in France?

As of January 2024, tiger mosquitoes – known for their ability to carry diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus – had been detected in 78 of France’s 96 mainland départements, including the Paris region.

This has left public health authorities concerned about the spread of dengue fever in France, particularly this summer as large crowds are expected amid the Olympic Games.

READ MORE: MAP: Tiger mosquitoes reach northern France

How common is dengue fever in France?

In the first four months of 2024, 1,679 cases of dengue fever were identified in mainland France, a number that is 13 times higher than the same period last year, Le Parisien reported.

Crucially, however, none of these are believed to have been contracted in mainland France – they were all reported among patients who had recently travelled from the tropical regions where dengue fever is common.

The majority of cases were from people who had visited the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe – where the disease is endemic.

These islands are for administrative purposes part of France – so often show up in French health data – but they are roughly 7,000km away from Paris.

So far, there have not been any indigenous cases (autochtone – or people infected on mainland French soil) yet this year.

Local transmission of the disease remains relatively rare. In 2023, nine separate outbreaks of indigenous dengue transmission were identified, one of which occurred in the Paris region. These led to 45 cases of local transmission (in mainland France).

Most were in southern France – in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Occitanie and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions – though one outbreak occurred in the Paris region, according to French public health authorities.

This is less than 2022, which was a notable year with 66 total cases of indigenous dengue fever were recorded. In comparison, between 2010 and 2021, only 48 cases (total) were recorded.

What to expect for 2024

Experts believe that the number of cases in France, including indigenous ones, will grow this year, as tiger mosquitoes now occupy more territory in mainland France.

On top of that, the number of cases has increased significantly in Martinique and Guadeloupe.

“What we see in France is a mirror image of what is happening in the French Caribbean, and more widely in Latin America and the rest of the Caribbean, where dengue fever has been circulating since the start of the year at unprecedented levels”, the head of Santé Publique France, Dr Caroline Semaille, said during a press conference.

The Olympic Games will also bring an influx of tourists from all over the world, and weather conditions are expected to be conducive to mosquitoes – a year with a lot of rainfall, and potentially high temperatures. 

What is dengue fever?

The disease is spread to people from bites by infected mosquitoes.

The most common symptoms are high fever, chills, abdominal, joint and muscle pains, and vomiting. It can also cause a skin rash that resembles measles, according to France’s Institut Pasteur.

Symptoms usually begin three to 14 days (with an average of four to seven) after being bitten.

However people are asymptomatic in 50 to 90 percent of cases (depending on the epidemic), which can make monitoring difficult.

At-risk groups include the immunocompromised, children and the elderly, who are more likely to suffer from severe forms of the disease.

Deaths from the disease are very rare, occurring in around 0.01 percent of all cases, almost all in countries that have poor healthcare systems.

How can I avoid tiger mosquitoes?

Female tiger mosquitoes lay their eggs in water, and they can lay several hundred eggs at once. Therefore try to avoid having any standing water outside your home and be aware of the items that might collect rainwater.

This includes regularly emptying vases, flower pots, as well as watering cans and pots. If you want to collect rainwater, you could cover water butts with mosquito nets or fabric to keep the mosquitoes from getting inside.

READ ALSO 5 plants that (allegedly) repel mosquitoes

You can also keep your gutters clean – this helps to keep the water flowing when it rains, and it avoids any stagnant pools from building up.

To protect yourself, try to wear long, loose and light-coloured clothing, in addition to insect repellent. You might also consider wearing a mosquito net head gear.

The main difference between tiger mosquitoes and other species would be getting a bite during the day, and the fact that tiger mosquitoes are likely to bite several times. You can tell for sure if it was a tiger mosquito by seeing the insect itself. They are also silent.

There is no immediate cause for alarm if you are bitten, in almost all cases the bites are just itchy and annoying. In very rare cases, tropical diseases can be spread by the mosquitoes – seek medical help if you develop a high fever and rash.

READ MORE: How to prevent the spread of tiger mosquitoes in France

What do tiger mosquitoes look like?

They are very small, about 5 mm, and they have a highly contrasting colour, with black and white stripes on their body and legs.

If you believe you have spotted a tiger mosquito, you can report it to public health authorities online.

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