News “vigilance measures” to face the fifth wave of Covid-19. At the end of a health defense council, the government announced a strengthening of the restrictions on Monday, December 6. The Prime Minister, Jean Castex, and the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, presented, among other things, a tightening of the protocol in schools, the closure of discos for four weeks and the opening of vaccination to children aged 5 to 11 years older. fragile. We compile in this article some answers to the questions asked on Tuesday in the direct from franceinfo.fr.
Schools move to level 3 of the protocol, but what about middle and high schools?
Only nursery and elementary schools are affected by the transition to level 3 of the health protocol. Jean Castex explained this choice by the acceleration in the number of contaminations in children under 12: “It makes sense, because these categories cannot be vaccinated yet, and are also much more screened.”
Regarding level 3 in schools, can the swimming pool activity be maintained?
Level 3 of the health protocol, which will apply from Thursday, December 9, only authorizes physical activities outdoors or those “low intensity, compatible with wearing a mask and a distance of 2 meters”. It therefore seems unlikely that swimming lessons will be continued.
On indoor contact sports, such as judo, does the Ministry of Sports intend to make an announcement soon?
The government’s announcement on Monday evening specifically concerned the national education health protocol, which is going up a notch in schools, with an effect on sports activities, but not only (contact sports were, of any way, already proscribed in the level 2 protocol, which will always apply to college and high school).
No announcement has been made concerning the practice of sport outside of school, for which the protocol in force has not changed. We have no information on a possible future announcement on this subject.
Are there any modifications for sports halls where the mask is not worn during practice?
The Prime Minister, Jean Castex, and the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, did not mention the gyms on Monday evening, for which nothing has changed, therefore: they remain open, and the mask is not compulsory. during practice. The only closure measure concerns discotheques, where it is notably justified by the fact that “wearing a mask is extremely difficult there”, explained Jean Castex. We could make the same observation in sports halls.
On the other hand, the recent results of the study by the Institut Pasteur on the places of contamination did not indicate a higher risk for people practicing a sporting activity, while the discotheques appeared to be the place where the risk is the greatest. (Results to be qualified because the study took place in summer, when some activities were done outside). Perhaps this is an explanation for the government’s choice.
Are night bars affected by the four week nightclub closures?
Jean Castex announced the closure of nightclubs, not to mention night bars. A priori, they are therefore not concerned. But maybe the prime minister just didn’t want to go into the details. Bars with an exemption to open after 2 a.m. come under a different administrative category from discotheques.
But it happens that they are considered as a whole by the government, which imposes on them for example the same protocol since this summer. (PDF document). To know if they will have to close, or return to more ordinary closing times, it may be necessary to wait for a text framing this measure to be published in the Official Journal, by Friday.
Can sanctions be taken in the event of non-compliance with teleworking by companies?
Elisabeth Borne, the Minister of Labor, said Tuesday morning that checks will take place “next week” in companies, in order to verify whether the extension of teleworking “to two to three days” per week is “well implemented”. However, it is useful to remember that Jean Castex only recommended this change to two to three days of teleworking per week. However, the Prime Minister clarified that “if that did not work by way of the recommendation, we would have to go through that of the obligation”, adding that a point would be made in a week.
The announced checks will perhaps make it possible to assess whether the recommendation is being followed closely. But they will also be used to assess the more general compliance with the health measures imposed on the company, such as wearing a mask in the premises.
Are company parties banned?
Jean Castex urged Monday evening not to organize business jars by the end of the year, and the Minister of Labor, Elisabeth Borne, repeated it Tuesday morning on LCI: “We must avoid all the moments when we find ourselves many without a mask, it is to be avoided in the coming weeks.” The wording is eloquent, however: it is a question of a “order”, but at no time was a ban on these gatherings by law mentioned. Your company party is strongly discouraged, but there is no indication that it will be illegal.
In addition, the law prohibits requiring a health pass to access a place where it is not usually mandatory. If your party is being held at your company premises rather than in a bar, you will not be able to ask guests for the pass or a negative test.
What about the booster dose for 12-17 year olds?
The government has not yet announced the opening of the recall campaign for minors. The High Authority for Health, whose executive follows the advice, has only authorized it from the age of 18 for the moment. The government simply assured that 12-17 year olds would not lose their health pass, since they do not have access to the booster.
Will the time between a Covid-19 infection and the vaccination of children also be a maximum of six months?
The Haute Autorité de Santé has recommended the extension of vaccination to the most vulnerable 5-11 year olds under the same conditions as the rest of the population, with the exception of the dose of vaccine administered, which corresponds to a third of that adults. The advice on how long to wait to get vaccinated after contamination will therefore be the same.
In addition, there is currently no question of imposing the health pass on this age group, and even less of making vaccination compulsory. The question of losing the health pass six months after contamination will therefore not arise for your child if he is not vaccinated.