The latest corona news
After the press conference of Rutte and De Jonge last week, it's still a bit of a wait-and-see situation to see if it works. The results of the latest measures should be visible this weekend. But of course, more happened in the meantime. An update.
1. The Netherlands is on its way to becoming the largest corona hotspot in Europe. We have been declared red by many neighboring countries, and in the case of travel, you increasingly need a negative PCR test to enter, now also in Italy. Last week, the RIVM reported 27,428 infections. In the latest 24-hour figures, 4,548 people tested positive.
2. The first two corona rapid tests have been approved, which has a huge impact on the current testing policy. It should now be possible to test 51,000 people per day in the lab. However, the GGD is not quite ready for that yet.
3. As we speak, the House of Representatives is debating the new corona law. Minister De Jonge has at least had to scrap enforcement behind closed doors, and the law states that it must be reviewed every three months.
4. The cafes in Paris are closing for two weeks as a precaution to prevent infections, while restaurants may remain open. By the way, going out late is a no-go in many countries, as the hospitality industry in Berlin closes at 11:00 PM, just like in Madrid, and in Belgium, everything will close at 11:00 PM starting Friday.
5. Good news: New Zealand seems to have the virus under control again. In Auckland, they are now also free from the last measures, so social distancing is no longer required, and you can visit each other freely. The borders are still closed, however.
6. Even more good news: in China, you can apparently go to a festival again. Without a face mask. Nuance: you absolutely must not be a risk case, this is checked by measuring your temperature and scanning a health app that determines whether you pose a risk. The lockdown in China was much stricter than in the Netherlands, as doctors were not allowed to see their families for months.
7. And perhaps we should be content with this news after the last meeting between these two: Joe Biden does not want to debate with Trump as long as he still has Covid-19. Meanwhile, one after another advisor of the president is testing positive. The president calls the coronavirus less dangerous than the flu after returning home from the hospital.
8. The recordings of GTST are temporarily on hold because someone from the team has tested positive for the coronavirus. The rest of the cast has no complaints, and it is not known who it is.
9. Now that the GGD is quite busy testing for COVID-19, there is noticeably high demand at commercial testing agencies for SOA tests. If you are considering retraining: something in the laboratory is definitely a good idea.
10. With over half a year of measures, we can read more and more trends. Research shows that we can suddenly entertain ourselves, spend more quality time with friends and family, preferably go out to eat for the full experience, and suddenly rediscover our home and own country. And you might think that we are drinking more, but research from SpiritsNL shows that we are actually opting for the light variant of alcoholic drinks.
