Covid ‘traffic light’ system approved in Spain

Valencian Community lifts almost all remaining restrictions

Valencian Community lifts almost all remaining restrictions image: twitter

Covid ‘traffic light’ system approved in Spain

Spain’s Ministry of Health and representatives of the communities have agreed this Tuesday, November 23, that more permissive measures must be taken regarding tackling Covid contagions throughout Spain.

In the first draft that the Alerts and Preparation and Response Plans prepared last week, a recommendation to the communities that were at the medium risk level. It was suggested to decree the closure of the hotel industry at 11pm, and nightlife at 1am. This would have been for those communities with an incidence of between 100 and 300, but with a worse hospital situation than the current one.

Ultimately, tday it has been agreed that it will not be like that, and these measures do not appear in the agreement in the Public Health Commission. Llimiting the hours of hotels and nightlife has been definitively discarded.

At a press conference today, the Minister of Health, Carolina Darius explained, “The traffic light document has only been approved by modifying the risk meters, but not the measures”.

This means that all current measures affecting the hospitality sector will remain the same. Instead of establishing more early closings, today’s agreement insists on vaccination, good ventilation, and the use of a mask and social distance as a way to avoid infections. The approved document means that levels of contagion will now first be taken into account before any measures are recommended.

Health is of the belief that vaccination is preventing the majority of infections from translating into serious cases or deaths. As a result, from now on, the cumulative incidence (AI) rises in each of the four risk levels. At the very lowest level, what was originally called the “new normal”, is now called “controlled circulation”.

The ‘low-risk’ level will allow a 14-day AI of 50 to 100 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, instead of 25 to 50 as in the old ‘traffic light’. Similarly, the ‘average level’ rises to a range of 100 to 300 cases per 100,000 inhabitants instead of 50 to 150. Regarding the ‘high-risk’ level, this will now be 300 to 500, instead of 150 to 250. Level 4, which previously started at 250, will now only come into force when there is an AI greater than 500.

There will also be the AI ​​at 7 days, which also rises, as does the rate of infections of those over 65 years of age. This is not the case of the percentage of diagnoses that give a positive result, which remains as it was. To date, with a positivity of 5.35 per cent, Spain is at the low-risk level in this category, as reported by 20minutos.es.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

Comments


    • John

      24 November 2021 • 10:41

      Cases cannot be used as a measure any more – they just can’t. Policy has to be formed on hospitalisation numbers. Say 10,000 people test positive, but only 3 of them are ill enough to go to hospital – does this mean you bring in a raft of restrictions? What would be the point, how will that help? You do sometimes wonder what the point of vaccinations was if all politicians can do is carry on mandating restrictions ad nauseum (and it will be, as this is the new normal now).

    • John

      24 November 2021 • 10:41

      Cases cannot be used as a measure any more – they just can’t. Policy has to be formed on hospitalisation numbers. Say 10,000 people test positive, but only 3 of them are ill enough to go to hospital – does this mean you bring in a raft of restrictions? What would be the point, how will that help? You do sometimes wonder what the point of vaccinations was if all politicians can do is carry on mandating restrictions ad nauseum (and it will be, as this is the new normal now).

    • M

      24 November 2021 • 19:14

      Same old outdated mentality, the old alpha strain “Vaccine” is not a benchmark to set a population it’s shelf life has come and gone. Delta strain + is here. Anti body tests are the way to go. Natural immunity also does not need any constantly changing Vaccines (which are not available anyway), so stop segragating people and look at the problems pragmatically for the future.

    • M

      24 November 2021 • 19:14

      Same old outdated mentality, the old alpha strain “Vaccine” is not a benchmark to set a population it’s shelf life has come and gone. Delta strain + is here. Anti body tests are the way to go. Natural immunity also does not need any constantly changing Vaccines (which are not available anyway), so stop segragating people and look at the problems pragmatically for the future.

    • DJH

      24 November 2021 • 19:15

      Quite right, it should be hospitalisation overrun and death cases, both directly attributable to Covid. Case loading is the younger contracting it, school children etc, who in most cases have very little problem with it.
      There is too much political posturing and not enough acting on data.

    • DJH

      24 November 2021 • 19:15

      Quite right, it should be hospitalisation overrun and death cases, both directly attributable to Covid. Case loading is the younger contracting it, school children etc, who in most cases have very little problem with it.
      There is too much political posturing and not enough acting on data.

    Comments are closed.