EU experiences new surge in COVID-19 cases after lifting restrictions: Report

Brussels [Belgium]: The European Union is experiencing another surge in COVID-19 cases as member countries continue to lift restrictions and return to pre-pandemic life, Marco Cavaleri, the head of the Biological Health Threats and Vaccines Strategy of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), said on Thursday.

"While many European countries are lifting restrictions and returning to pre-pandemic normal life, we notice that infection rates are increasing again in some member states after the steady decrease we witnessed over the past few weeks," Cavaleri told a briefing in Amsterdam. Cavaleri noted that the new infections are mostly driven by the Omicron strain, which is more transmissible than other variants of the coronavirus.

He noted that vaccination remains the best option to ensure a high level of protection against developing a severe disease or hospitalization, and urged people to get vaccinated and receive booster shots if eligible.

Cavaleri noted that EMA is currently reviewing several new vaccines and medicines for treating coronavirus.

Many European countries have been announcing the gradual lifting of COVID-19 restrictions since the beginning of 2022. EU nations started lifting travel restrictions and abandoning testing for visiting public places. The European Commission on February 22 advised all member countries to remove the ban on non-essential travel for vaccinated and recovered citizens of third countries on March 1.

Germany recorded 2,853,494 new COVID-19 cases from March 3-16, with 294,924 new infections in the last 24 hours. In France, 877,256 people were infected with COVID-19 for the same period of time, with 105,786 new cases recorded yesterday.

The situation is worsening in the United Kingdom as well, with 667,404 new cases from March 3-16 and 76,142 cases recorded yesterday.