State of emergency, is the extension until the end of December?

The state of emergency, expiring on 31 July, could be extended, perhaps even until 31 December: second Republic, this would be the orientation of the Prime Minister Mario Draghi. A different position from that of the Minister of Health, Roberto Hope, who hypothesized not to renew it anymore, precisely “to give a positive signal to the country”.

The state of emergency, on the other hand, could be prolonged for several reasons: because the vaccination campaign has not yet achieved herd immunity, because AstraZeneca’s problems – with the decision to start heterologous vaccination – are not yet resolved and also because it remains the unknown of the Delta variant, which in Great Britain has multiplied the number of infections despite the good vaccination coverage achieved.

Therefore, both the extraordinary commissioner, General Francesco Paolo Figliuolo, and the Technical Scientific Committee would remain in their place. And anti-contagion measures would be maintained, such as the mandatory use of masks (although the rules may change depending on how the situation evolves).

Meanwhile, thegoal of immunizing 80% of the Italian population by the end of September remains plausible: “Over 54 million doses will arrive by September: I had taken leeway in agreement with Draghi,” explains Figliuolo. “We are able to cover 80 percent of the vaccinable audience by that date, as required by the plan, which is sustainable.”

The Spallanzani Institute in Rome has announced the launch of a study on the efficacy and safety of mix vaccinale, recalling the “Encouraging results” collected in other countries. According to Figliuolo, there will be sufficient doses of Pfizer and Moderna to guarantee the continuation of the vaccination campaign for the youngest and, also, the recall of the 930,000 under 60s who received the first dose of AstraZeneca. «The incoming doses are sufficient, we have not asked for new doses of mRna vaccines, but we are studying. Additional doses are welcome, should they arrive ».

Meanwhile, the data on infections are encouraging: the positivity rate dropped to 0.6%, the lowest percentage ever recorded.

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