The double decision of the Catalan government to ask that masks be made mandatory again in Catalonia and to apply a minimum reversal in Covid de-escalation in view of the terrible figures that are emerging these days and are largely a consequence of the Sant Joan long weekend in June, proposes two measures that are sensible and should bring us back to earth again: the coronavirus pandemic is not over and although vaccination rates are advancing rapidly we are still far from the figures needed to consider that the battle is won.
In fact, a return to mask use in outdoor spaces has already been occurring as a natural response in recent days and, in particular, among the elderly. After a massive effort for fifteen months and having got their two jabs, no one wants an anecdote like whether or not they wear a mask on some occasion to end up having consequences for their health. It is true that the growing number of vaccinations - all in the age groups of highest risk - mean that there is no upsurge in admissions to hospitals, but it is also true that Catalonia's primary care centres (CAPs) are full to bursting, when not actually overwhelmed.
The EPG outbreak risk stands at more than 1,280 points when a week ago it was 157 and two weeks ago it was 98. There are towns like Capçanes, in the Priorat county, with 400 inhabitants, where the outbreak risk is 10,091; in Peramola, in the Alt Urgell, it is 5,891; Sitges, in the Garraf, rates at 5,143; and Vilassar de Mar, in the Maresme, has a figure of 4,959, to mention a few municipalities. The percentage of coronavirus tests in Catalonia that yield positive results has risen to 14.9% when fifteen days ago it was 3.7% and the WHO considers that an epidemic is controlled when that rate is below 5%.
We are, therefore, in a critical phase in which the vaccine is only dampening the real incidence and mortality. This Tuesday, a person with political responsibilities offered me an interesting reflection: is there any reward for the public in the fact that they are setting the bar as high as possible in the fight against coronavirus after seeing the case of the president of the Community of Madrid, whose region has seen more deaths than anyone's and yet the public rewards her with overwhelming election results?
There's no an easy answer, because it can end up seeming as though the dead don’t vote and the living don’t care. The path taken by Catalonia - with errors, of course, some of them not minor such as the mismanagement of the restaurant sector, which suffered more than necessary - has been, in general, correct and hence should not change. Of course, explaining it to the maximum and being as empathetic as possible with the sectors affected. Right now, that means nightlife. Tomorrow, we don't know.