Thursday 16 / May / 2024
ROME: As a national lockdown to fight the coronavirus pandemic is drawing to a close, Italy on Saturday posted a decrease in new infections, according to the latest numbers released by the Civil Protection Department.
The number of new infections were 1,900 in the last 24 hours, a drop from Friday's figure, bringing the total number of infections, fatalities, and recoveries to 209,328.
There were 1,665 additional recoveries, raising that total to 79,914.
The death toll registered on Saturday was 474, bringing the total to 28,710 since the pandemic first broke out in the northern Lombardy region on Feb. 21.
Of those infected, 1,539 are in intensive care (down by 39 patients compared to Friday) and 17,357 are hospitalized with symptoms (down by 212 patients). The rest, or 81 percent of those who tested positive, are in isolation at home.
The national lockdown, which went into effect on March 10, will end on May 3.
Phase two
Speaking at a nationally televised press conference earlier in the day, Extraordinary Commissioner for the Coronavirus Emergency Domenico Arcuri explained what lies ahead after the lockdown, in what the government has dubbed Phase Two.
"We must all be aware that on May 4, an even tougher challenge begins," said Arcuri.
He compared Phase Two to "the second half of a football match, and as we all understand by now, nobody knows how long it will last or how it will end."
"The relative freedom we are each about to gain must be ruled in the service of protecting the health of all," Arcuri said.
"We have distributed 26.7 million masks over the past week to regional authorities across Italy, with a total of 165.5 million masks distributed since the beginning of emergency," said the commissioner.
Arcuri added that in May there will be a distribution of 12 million masks a day, and that this number will rise to 18 million a day in June, 25 million in July-August, and 30 million by the time schools open in September.
He also showed prototypes of children's masks decorated with superheroes and cartoons. "We will put these on the market very soon."
The commissioner said he has secured deals with retailers and distributors -- including supermarket chains, pharmacies and drug stores -- so that starting Monday, surgical masks will be available at a fixed price of 50 eurocents (55 U.S. cents) plus VAT per mask.
They will be sold in 50,000 retailers across the country, or in one shop per every 1,200 inhabitants.
By mid-May, the fixed-price masks will be available in 100,000 retailers, or one per 600 inhabitants, said the commissioner.
"We have implemented this (deal) in the exclusive interests of the citizens," said Arcuri. "No one will lose money on this. Everyone will earn the right amount - no more and no less."
"Health and individual protection have no price and must not be speculated on," he said in reference to cases of masks being sold at wildly overpriced rates before the government intervened.
Arcuri also said that serological testing for coronavirus antibodies will begin on Monday on an initial sample of 150,000 volunteers and 5 million swabs will be distributed to Italy's 20 regions over the next two months.
"Tests and swabs, prevention and knowledge, time and space - these are all the elements we need in order to embark on Phase Two in a more mindful way," said Arcuri.
"Social distancing, maximum personal hygiene, and individual protection kits -- this is what the second half of the match will consist of," he said. "We must not lower our guard."
Arcuri reminded everyone that "the virus only spreads through contagion, which in turn happens only if one person infects another person. So let's do everything possible to make sure that doesn't happen."
"We have done all we could," Arcuri noted, adding "Starting Monday, it really will be up to you."
Concerted efforts
Also on Saturday, the European Commission, along with Italy, France, Germany and Norway, announced the launch of a global cooperation project against COVID-19.
The initiative was announced in Italy on La Stampa newspaper, where Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte published an open letter which he signed jointly with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and European Council President Charles Michel.
The goal is to raise initial funding of 7.5 billion euros (8 billion U.S. dollars) to finance what the leaders described as "unprecedented global cooperation (project) involving scientists, regulatory authorities, industry, governments, international organizations, foundations and health care operators."
"Today the world is fighting a pervasive virus that has overwhelmed countries and continents...(and) brought chaos and suffering throughout the globe," the letter read.
"In this highly interconnected world, the global health system is only as strong as its weakest link. To protect every one of us, we must protect each other," the letter noted.
"Our goal is simple...to develop the diagnostic tools, treatments, and vaccines as rapidly as possible and to distribute them to as many people as possible, (in order) to help the world overcome the pandemic," the leaders wrote.
"If we can develop a vaccine produced by the world for the world, this vaccine will be a global public good that is unique in the 21st century. Together with our partners, we commit to making it available and accessible to all," the letter continued.
"This is the duty of our generation," said the leaders, adding that "high-quality, low-cost health care technologies are not a daydream. Over the past 20 years, we have seen that public-private partnerships have made several life-saving vaccines available to the poorest around the world."
"By coming together to support science and solidarity today, we lay the foundations for more unity tomorrow... Inspired by the sustainable development goals, we can redefine the power of communities, societies, and global cooperation so that no one is left behind," the letter concluded.
