The groups of specialists that help the government of the state of Rio and the city hall of the capital, at the moment, have different views on the realization of the New Year’s Eve party in the city.
While the first committee assesses that the arrival of the Ômicron variant of the coronavirus is a warning and that, as a precaution, the traditional fireworks display on the shores of Rio beaches should be cancelled, the scientists who help the Rio city hall understand that it is not yet time to give up the parties.
The understanding of both, however, is that the city and state of Rio are living their best moment to face the pandemic and that the success of vaccination must be considered before deciding on an alternative.
The groups will debate the matter again in the next few days: the state committee meets between Wednesday and Friday of the next week, while the specialists who work with the city hall meet on December 15th.
The state secretary of Health of Rio, Alexandre Chieppe, told the CNN that in another 10 days the international scientific community will have more knowledge about the strain, first identified in southern African countries.
“The position of the committee that advises the state is one of prudence because the effects that this variant could generate in large agglomerations on the coast are not yet known. But effective knowledge about it is being produced now”, he stated.
Regarding the divergence between the two groups, Chieppe stated that he is considering a call for a joint meeting if the divergence remains.
“We can try to find a happy medium. It’s no use banning everything because that will encourage clandestine parties. But there are options, such as limiting the number of subway tickets, for example,” said Chieppe.
Daniel Becker, member of the scientific committee of the city of Rio, assesses that the indexes on the pandemic in the city make, at this moment, New Year’s Eve safe.
“Covid is under control in the city. We have reached a good point, which is low transmissibility and we have no serious cases”, he stated.
Reference: CNN Brasil
