More easing of restrictions to come next week

VALENCIAN president, Ximo Puig has said he believes that all restrictions and quarantines should be reduced, “but with prudence” because the pandemic “is not over yet”.

He confirmed on Wednesday that the pandemic situation is improving across the region and that “we are moving towards a better normality” and as such the further easing of restrictions would be discussed at the next interdepartmental meeting,

Speaking in Castellón, after attending the signing of a road map for the creation of a new Music Space with the city’s mayor, Amparo Marco, and regional Education Minister, Vicent Marzà, Puig said the meeting would most likely be Monday or Tuesday next week,

Puig said that the situation in the region is very positive with the R number at 0.62, (the rate at which cases of the virus reproduce) and that previously the number had been double what it is now. He also said that the current number of hospitalised cases of coronavirus is now between 1,200 and 1,300, On Wednesday there were 1,225 people in the region’s hospitals with 119 of them in ICUs.

He explained: “Obviously, at this stage of the pandemic, all restrictions and quarantines must be lowered, but with prudence, because we cannot forget that, although there are fewer cases than last week, there will be cases and people who will be in hospital and in the ICU and who will die of this disease,” he stressed.

The current restrictions, which are in place until 28 February, include use of the Covid Digital Certificate, also known as the Covid Passport, and the government may decide to scrap the use of it earlier than planned as some other regions have already done.

Pediatricians call for removal of facemasks in the classroom

The Valencian Paediatric Society has called on the regional government to start phasing out the use of facemasks in schools. The group of doctors has suggested facemasks be removed progressively, stating that there is a high level of vaccination among this age group and saying that children need a break from wearing the face coverings.

The group of pediatricians has also insisted that they should be involved in the committees assessing measures to be implanted in schools, saying that they know more than anyone the state of health among children.