© AFP
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Source: BELGIAN
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In the Netherlands, the experts of the ‘Outbreak Management Team’ (OMT) – which advises the government in connection with the corona pandemic – are calling for all sectors to be closed, with the exception of essential shops such as supermarkets, pharmacies and drugstores. Insiders confirm this to the ANP news agency. With such a strict lockdown, the advance of the omikron variant of the corona virus should be slowed down.
The cabinet will consider the emergency advice on Saturday. That’s a day ahead of schedule. According to NOS sources in The Hague, it is likely that a new press conference will be held that same day to announce the new corona measures.
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There is a good chance that the cabinet will decide to close secondary education a week earlier in addition to primary schools and to close everything else except essential shops and services, such as supermarkets and banks. The rest, such as catering, hairdressers, clothing stores, amusement parks, furniture stores, zoos: everything must then be closed. The House will return from recess next week to debate additional measures, probably on Wednesday.
In the Netherlands, the omikron variant has been diagnosed in more than a hundred people, but the actual number of cases is probably higher. The virus version spreads quickly. This could lead to a new wave of infections. The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) expects omikron to be the most common variant shortly after the turn of the year. This will probably be the case sooner in Amsterdam.
A doubling every two days
According to models, it could again lead to overloading of hospitals and intensive care units. In the United Kingdom, the number of infections doubles every two to three days. RIVM boss Jaap van Dissel calculated in the House of Representatives this week that the same growth could lead to 600 hospital admissions per day, of which 100 to 125 in IC. By comparison, at the peak of the current wave, in late November and early December, there were about 400 hospitalizations per day, of which about 50 were in ICUs.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte previously said he was “not hopeful” about the developments surrounding the new variant, which appears to be much more contagious than the delta variant that has been dominant until now. Outgoing minister Hugo de Jonge (Public Health) said on Friday after the Council of Ministers that the cabinet is “greatly concerned” about the new virus variant. “We will take the necessary measures if necessary.”
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