COVID-19 Cases Rise as Fall Season Begins, Vaccination Campaign Set too Launch
As temperatures drop and children return to school, France is experiencing a resurgence of COVID-19 infections. Data from Sentine, which monitors acute respiratory infections, shows the incidence rate of COVID-19 among patients in consultation reached 49 cases per 100,000 inhabitants during the week of september 15-21. This marks a second consecutive week of increasing rates, currently at a moderate level of activity.
The RELAB surveillance network reports that 25% of COVID-19 tests conducted in medical biology laboratories during the same week were positive.Public Health France also notes a 37% increase in hospitalizations linked to COVID-19 for the week.
Experts beleive these numbers likely underestimate the true extent of infection, as Professor Nathan Peiffer-Smadja, an infectiologist at Bichat hospital, points out, “The majority of people do not test. For many, COVID manifests itself like a cold with cough, sometimes a little fever.”
The rise in cases is partially attributed to the spread of the XFG variant across Europe. This variant, nicknamed “Frankenstein” due to its hybrid origin from multiple strains, is not believed to be more virulent. “The variants of Omicron are very transmissible, but less aggressive than the initial virus,” explains Professor Peiffer-Smadja.”COVID-19 has become a bit of a respiratory virus like any other.”
Antonin Bal, deputy director of the National Reference Center for Viruses and Respiratory Infections at Civil Hospices in Lyon, notes the current increase is consistent with patterns observed in the past three years. “This resurgence of cases in September is similar to that observed over the same period in the last three years. And it is indeed likely that cases continue to increase in the coming weeks.” He also emphasizes that the current strain remains close enough to the vaccine strain to maintain reasonable vaccine effectiveness, notably against severe illness.
However, certain populations remain particularly vulnerable, including those who are immunocompromised, undergoing transplantation or chemotherapy, or are very elderly. To address this, a vaccination campaign will begin on October 14th and run through January 31, 2026.
Despite the campaign, concerns remain about uptake. Antonin Bal highlights low participation rates in previous campaigns, stating, ”Membership of vaccination campaigns is not at all optimal. Only 30% of the population eligible for COVID vaccination was vaccinated last year.”
