The Alpes-Maritimes has hit the critical two-week mark, the amount of time epidemiologists agree that it takes to substantially measure the effects of ‘deconfinement’. Now, the question is: have the reopenings negatively impacted the health situation?

On 19^th May, the people of the Alpes-Maritimes were once again free to enjoy aperos on a terrace with friends, an afternoon shopping excursion or a trip to the cinema. It was also the first time in many months that a sense of normalcy returned to the area, with actual smiling faces replacing masks and the population basking in the late spring sun and doing the things everyone once took for granted.

But has all this freedom come with a price?

 According to the French government website, the answer is no, so far.  

Since 19^th May, the number of people contracting Covid has actually slowed down and begun to decline. In fact, the current incidence rate of 26.77 cases per 100,000 residents has not been this low since August 2020, and is down 41.38%  on the previous week.

The latest data from 22^nd to 28^th May shows that, on average, there have been about 40 new cases per day. This isn’t bad considering the department has over one million inhabitants. 

The positivity rate among those being tested for Covid-19 in the department has also been on the decline since 19^th May, down 41.4%.

Another bit of good news is that hospital admission rates have gone down to summer 2020 levels, albeit slightly slower than pre-19^th May. In February, at the pinnacle of the crisis, there were in excess of 750 patients in hospital. Today, it is two-thirds that number. Though this is still rather high, it has taken enormous pressure off the hospitals with only two in three beds now being occupied.

Intensive care patients have also decreased significantly. Whilst there were 136 Covid-related cases at the height, the latest figures show that number to be 33 with only one new case on 31^st May, down 50% over the last seven days.

Vaccinations are also on the rise, with 464,741 people in the Alpes Maritimes having received at least their first dose, and 257,165 being fully vaccinated as of 31^st May. This added layer of protection will bode well for not only stopping the virus in its tracks but stopping summer 2021 from turning into another “bummer summer”.

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Photo by Paul Teysen on Unsplash