Europe called on to react “urgently” to avoid another massacre

Europe must take “urgently” measures in the face of the new wave of Covid-19, estimated the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (link in English) (ECDC) Wednesday, November 24. This alert from the EU health agency responsible for epidemics comes the day after a warning from the WHO on the risk of another massacre this winter.

With more than 2.5 million cases and nearly 30,000 deaths recorded in the past week, the Old Continent is by far the region of the world most affected by the pandemic, according to official data collected by AFP. And the trend remains on the rise, especially in countries with the lowest vaccination rates. The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control therefore calls for filling the gaps in vaccination. The general level of vaccination in the EU, still below 70% of the total population, “leaves a wide vaccine gap which cannot be filled quickly and gives a large space for the virus to spread”, emphasizes the agency. It also invites to take “non-pharmaceutical measures”, a generic term for anti-Covid restrictions. Europe faces “a very high risk of burden” in December and January “if public health measures are not applied urgently”, warns the ECDC, whose opinions are advisory.