Return to school in attendance in September and use of masks: what Minister Speranza says

The schools will they reopen in attendance in September? We start talking about it. And the Minister of Health, Roberto Speranza, returned to the point in a speech during the broadcast Cartabianca on Rai3 of 22 June. “I hope this can happen – said the head of health – we will have to monitor the evolution of the variants, which are the only point that can offer an element of concern. If there are no upheavals in terms of variants, which are unknown, I am confident that schools can start again in September in attendance “.

Then he returned to the point of masks, which a lot (perhaps too much) has caused people to discuss in recent weeks: “I just signed an ordinance that allows you not to use the mask outdoors from June 28th. The mask is and remains a fundamental tool. I have just signed an ordinance which states that the obligation to always use it outdoors falls. It must necessarily be worn only when the distance cannot be respected but it remains a fundamental point of our strategy. It’s true that our numbers are better than a month ago, but we shouldn’t consider the game closed “.

There could be a news on the masks even among the benches: “The goal of achieving herd immunity by the end of September is still absolutely within reach – explained Undersecretary of Health Andrea Costa to RaiNews24 – when it is reached , we must evaluate the hypothesis of stop wearing masks at school. We are facing a positive scenario that will improve from week to week ». Analyzing today’s data and projecting them into the future, “I think it is reasonable to think of an extension of a couple of months, three to get to October” to put an end to the state of emergency.

However, the game is not closed because, while a renamed variant is even identified in three Indian states Delta Plus, the spread of the Delta variant raises concerns, especially for the evolution we are witnessing in Great Britain. The Prime Minister returned today, Mario Draghi, to the Chamber of Deputies on the occasion of the communications in view of the European Council scheduled for 24 and 25 June: “We are in a period in which everything looks rosy again, let’s not delude ourselves: we are prepared, we know, we have the experience of last year. The cooperation of local authorities is essential for the identification of variants and outbreaks“. And then add that “in this positive economic picture“, Of a Europe and an Italy that are finally returning to growth,”some risks remain. The first is precisely the epidemiological situation: although it is improving considerably, this must be monitored carefully. In particular, we need to monitor the emergence and spread of new and dangerous variants, which can slow down the reopening program and slow down consumption and investments».

Speranza also returned to the variants: “The Delta variant must be followed with the utmost attention, in the last verification carried out in Italy it was only 1% of cases but we expect this figure to rise because it is a variant more capable of spreading, we must follow it with the utmost attentionHe said. In fact, some independent estimates estimate the diffusion between the 7 and about 25% of the total of the cases recorded daily in our country. In any case, the global health scenario appears to be improving: the global number of new Covid cases and deaths continues to decrease. In the last week monitored by the World Health Organization (WHO), the one between 14 and 20 June, it was in fact touched the lowest weekly incidence since last February. This is over 2.5 million new infections, down by 6% compared to the previous seven days, and over 64 thousand deaths, – 12% compared to the week before. Specifically, in Europe there were 324,829 new weekly cases, equal to 13% of the world total and down by 6%, 6,452 deaths (10% of the total), down by 12%.