“The goal – four million vaccinated by the end of March”: The Director General of the Ministry of Health, Prof. Hezi Levy, held a press briefing today (Thursday) and concluded the first week of the national operation “Give a Shoulder”. “We have enough vaccines, and I hope that we will meet this goal successfully. I say with great satisfaction: Israel is the country that has so far vaccinated the most people – 180,000 citizens, “he noted.
“We are on the rise in the average weekly morbidity, which hovered around 3,000,” he stated. “The morbidity coefficient is rising, the overall rate is about 1.26, which is quite a bit. There are sectors where this coefficient is even higher – 1.7. At the same time, there is a very nice increase in the number of tests alongside an increase in the number of verified. 17-15 years old, and also at the younger ages. “
He said, “The number of patients, deceased and hospitalized is increasing. About 750 people are hospitalized in the hospitals. About 520-500 of them in critical condition and 117 respirators. We are currently between 70 and 90 new severe patients daily. This is a high number, which requires appropriate therapeutic abilities. At the height of the previous closure, we were with 60 new patients a day. “
Prof. Levy narrows on A malfunction in the computers of the Ministry of Health, which prevents the updating of the disease data. “We got to 90,000 tests. We want to get to 100,000 tests and maybe more. This is accompanied by birth cords. There was no collapse, but a heavy load on the computer system. There was a delay in sending the lab results. The computer system worked overnight and all day. This was done in order to expand the circle of subjects, “he emphasized.
Prime Minister Netanyahu, earlier this week: “There is no sign that the vaccine we have does not overcome the corona mutation from Britain” // Photo: GPO
Regarding the British mutation: “The new virus is more contagious. At the same time, it is not more violent. The disease remains as it was in terms of the extent of morbidity and mortality. The important thing that interests us all – what the vaccine will do to this virus. Pfizer vaccines, Of modern and also of other companies cover the virus. The mutant virus is not resistant to vaccines, which is encouraging. We need to continue to vaccinate even more, “he added.
“Therefore, we decided to isolate the returnees in the hotels, and do everything to prevent the spread of the mutant virus. We do tests for everyone and all the positive tests undergo genetic sequencing. “People with this virus are all in isolation.”
“We are on a slippery slope”
“Some say the closure is unnecessary. We are on a slippery slope, if we do not decide on a closure we will reach 9,000 hundreds before mid-January and an order of magnitude of 800 critically ill patients. It is time to stop it.”
Regarding commerce: “Entertainment and leisure places will not operate in a closure. Only now have the malls and street shops opened and we are Egypt for that.” Also, “Unfortunately, the activity of hotels in Eilat and the Dead Sea will be stopped.”
Regarding the education system: “Schooling will continue in the age groups that operate today – kindergartens, grades 1-4 and 11-12. The ministers of health and education responded to the public’s requests. In the original decision, the schools should have been open until 13:00. “We extended the hours. They will operate in the same format as before the closure. Grades 11-12 will study because the matriculation exams will begin in a month or two. We did not want to hurt them. They can prepare under the conditions of the purple mark.”