There will most likely be 15,000 to 20,000 new cases of COVID-19 every day in Israel, the official overseeing the country’s reaction to the pandemic said on Wednesday, as fitness experts resume an indoor mask mandate to stop the new outbreak.
The moving average of infections shown rose from 2,400 on June 6 to 7,661 on Tuesday.
Speaking to the Knesset Health Committee, Salman Zarka said the new variant of the coronavirus that mutated from Omicron, known as BA. 5, is gaining traction and is more resistant to vaccines than previous strains.
“The BA. 5 strain lately accounts for about 50 percent of patients,” he said. “The strain has caused mild illness in young people, but we can see an increase in hospitalizations. “
He said BA. 5 would replace Omicron as the dominant variant and continue to gain traction.
“If the vaccine worked 90 percent compared to Delta and if 30 percent of the other vaccinated people became inflamed with Omicron, with the new strain, the vaccine is less effective at preventing infections, but protects against serious diseases,” Zarka said.
He reiterated his advice to wear a face mask in enclosed public spaces. Lately, masks are mandatory in medical facilities.
“Some are thinking about going back to what requires wearing masks,” he said. “We have to weigh the moment. “
Israel eliminated its requirement for an indoor mask in April, as the number of infections dropped dramatically. Outdoor masks are no longer mandatory since April last year.
Salman Zarka also said that it is possible that Israelis will soon be officially identified as COVID-19 patients based only on a home test, under certain conditions, while at the same time, the Ministry of Health is expanding testing facilities.
“Next Monday we will ask the commission to approve a regulation that allows a home control monitored by telephone, so that those who take home control are registered in the systems of the Ministry of Health,” he announced.
Lately there are 34,275 active cases in the country, adding 119 serious cases, according to the ministry. Six days ago there were 74 serious cases.
The death toll stands at 10,882, six dead in the last week.
The R-value has fallen, but is still very high at 1. 46. The figure measures the number of other people each coronavirus carrier infects on average, and any number greater than 1 means the spread of COVID-19 is increasing. It began to rise above 1 in mid-May, after remaining below that threshold for just two months.
With 22,306 tests conducted on Tuesday, positivity stood at 34. 35%.
Supporting The Times of Israel is not a transaction for an online service, like subscribing to Netflix. The ToI network is for other people like you who care about a common good: making sure that Israel’s balanced and guilty policy remains to be held loose from tax to millions of other people around the world.
Of course, we will remove all classified ads from your page and have access to exceptional content from the network. But your help gives you something deeper than that: the pride of joining something that really matters.
That’s why we introduced The Times of Israel ten years ago, to provide discerning readers like you with a detailed policy of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other media outlets, we have not established a paywall. But because the journalism we do is expensive, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become vital to help our paintings join the Times of Israel community.
For just $6 a month, you can help our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel WITHOUT ADVERTISING, as well as access exclusive content only for members of the Times of Israel community.
Thank you, David Horovitz, founding editor of The Times of Israel.