All of Italy in the white zone, no yellow zone for Sicily

Italy still white zone, at least for this week, including Sicily which has avoided the yellow zone. The island, however, is preparing to launch special rules and measures to increase vaccinations, out of fear and in the forecast of an increase in coronavirus infections thanks to the Delta variant. Read also THE SITUATION IN SICILY – According to what emerges from the decision-making indicators, based on data (source: Ministry of Health-Civil Protection) updated to the period 13-19 August, Sicily with 9.2% of the intensive care occupation the critical threshold of 10% that would have made it go back to yellow, since the other parameters for the color change have also been largely exceeded. The Island, against a 9.2% occupancy of intensive care units, instead exceeds – with 16.5% – the maximum occupancy threshold, by Covid patients, of non-critical area wards, set by the new parameters at 15%. And it records an incidence well beyond the critical level of 50 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants, reaching, in the week 13-19 August, 155.8 cases per 100 thousand, an increase compared to the previous week (6-12 August) in which the incidence stood at 127.2. “I believe that in September, and especially next week, there may be a further increase in infections, but I am reasonably convinced that joining the vaccination campaign, with some of the measures that are being adopted, will show positive signs”, Ruggero Razza, regional councilor for health, told Timeline on SkyTg24 yesterday. “Today, with an order from President Musumeci, we are activating centers in each of the municipalities of Sicily that have less than 60 percent of vaccinated people sample. And in these hours we are also evaluating restrictions that may concern these municipalities, with the aim of encouraging vaccination “, he added.” I must also say that some of our initiatives, I am also thinking about the use of some particular rules in the world of work and access to public offices, which have been the object of criticism by the Privacy Guarantor – he explained – have seen this authority not grasp the absolutely necessary spirit of measures that a Region, characterized by a low rate of adherence to the vaccination campaign in some generational groups, needs to introduce elements that freely convince citizens to have to vaccinate. “THE SITUATION IN SARDINIA – Another region, which had been in the balance for a few days for a possible change of color in yellow, is Sardinia. Even the island – according to the weekly indicators analyzed yesterday in the control room – has in fact an incident za very high (even more than Sicily), at 156.4 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants (compared to 141.8 in the previous week), and the percentage of intensive care occupation is 9.2% (a whisker below the threshold of 10%) but with regard to hospitalizations in ordinary wards – another parameter involved in the passage in yellow – with 9.9%, it is well below the maximum threshold of 15%. ISS REPORT – The Rt index at national level is still down, down to 1.1, compared to last week when it stood at 1.27. This is what emerges from the Iss-Ministry of Health weekly monitoring on the progress of the Covid epidemic in Italy. “In the period 28 July-10 August, the mean Rt calculated on symptomatic cases was equal to 1.1 (range 1.00-1.27) – we read – a decrease compared to the previous week but above the threshold epidemic “, it is specified. No Region / Autonomous Province exceeds the critical occupancy threshold for beds in the intensive care or medical area. The intensive care employment rate is up to 4.9% (Ministry of Health daily survey), with the number of people hospitalized increasing from 322 (10 August) to 423 (17 August). The employment rate in medical areas nationwide increases to 6.2%. The number of people hospitalized in these areas is increasing from 2,880 (10 August) to 3,472 (17 August).