ROME (AP) – The variant of the coronavirus discovered in Great Britain is common among infected school children in Italy and contributes to a “robust” rise in the COVID-19 infection curve in the country , the health minister said Tuesday.
Roberto Speranza told reporters that the variant, associated with higher transmission rates, has shown ubiquity “among the youngest age group” of the population.
In recent weeks, the incidence of new cases among young people in Italy has eclipsed the incidence among the elderly population, a reversal of the way COVID-19 ravaged residents in the first months of the pandemic.
Italy, a country of 60 million people where COVID-19 first broke out in the West in February 2020, has registered nearly 3 million confirmed cases.
Speranza announced tougher guidelines, contained in new Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s first anti-pandemic decree, intended to try to “control this contamination curve”, especially among school-aged children.
There are “fairly robust signs of a rebound in the contamination curve and terrible variants,” particularly the one discovered in Britain, the minister said.
Superior Institute of Health president Silvio Brusaferro said that analyzing cases on Feb. 18, 54% of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Italy related to that variant. But, Brusaferro said, “if measured today, the percentage would certainly be higher.”
Another variant, found in Brazil, is now involved in 4.3% of recent COVID-19 cases in Italy, Brusaferro said, particularly in central Italy, including the area of the region of Rome.
In recent days, authorities have taken steps to shut down many towns and cities in areas where transmission speeds are rapidly increasing. The mayor of Bologna, which has a population of 400,000, has announced that the city will be subject to strict “red zone” closing rules from Thursday and until March 21, meaning all restaurants and cafes will be closed for dining, as well as non-essential stores.
Another critical place is Como, the lakeside town near Switzerland. Many of Como’s residents commute across the border.
The variant found in South Africa is implicated in 0.4% of COVID-19 infections in Italy and is mainly limited to the Italian Alpine region near the border with Austria, Brusaferro said.
Draghi’s decree, which will take effect on Saturday and last until April 6, until just after Easter, tightened measures for schools. It requires that all schools, including nursery and primary schools, in “red zone” regions must be covered. Some exceptions are made for students with special needs.
But the decree loosens the restrictions in the cultural world. From March 27, cinemas and theaters can reopen in “yellow zone” regions with low incidence and virus transmission rates, but these locations must limit capacity to 25%. Museums in yellow zones, which are allowed in all the public on weekdays, can also open on weekends from 27 March.
Gyms and swimming pools will remain closed. There is also a national curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. and a ban on travel between regions of Italy.
The known death toll of over 98,000 in Italy is the second highest in Europe, after Britain.