“Travel restrictions are less likely to have a significant long-term effect on timing or severity than strict local implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions. [medidas restritivas], especially given the dominance of the delta variable in all EU/EEA countries [União Europeia e Espaço Económico Europeu]This is stated by the head of the Department of Infectious Diseases and Epidemiology at the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ole Hoyer, in a written interview with Lusa in Brussels.
For Ole Heuer, “Travel restrictions will be important if implemented early, consistent and complete, and if there is evidence of circulating a new type of SARS-CoV-2, particularly the immune escape variant, to delay your presentation.”
However, “while traveling, preventive measures must be maintained, regardless of the traveler’s vaccination status,” says the expert, urging “the use of face masks, avoiding crowds and maintaining physical distances, as well as betting on better ventilation in stations and transportation such as aircraft. trains and buses.”
The EU is currently facing a re-emergence of SARS-CoV-2 infection leading to COVID-19, with admissions, ICU admissions and deaths also rising due to delta-variable predominance (more contagious) and lower temperatures, which are more conducive to respiratory diseases. .
These days, also in view of the end of the year celebrations, many European countries have reintroduced restrictive measures, especially for the unvaccinated, with the obligation to provide a health permit (proof of vaccination or test) to access some public places, such as Germany or Belgium.
Austria, which started by restricting the unvaccinated, has now extended the confinement to everyone and made vaccination mandatory in the country, being the first European country to do so.
When asked about these more restrictive measures targeting people who have chosen not to be vaccinated, Ole Hoyer said that “access to strata of unvaccinated individuals is vital to increase immunization coverage and protect against critical illness, hospitalization and mortality.”
However, “there is no single approach to increasing vaccination in different populations”, as it is “a complex issue with underlying causes for declining use that vary widely between countries and within each country”, stresses the expert.
Uli Hoyer also recalls that “various countries have reported [ao ECDC] After adopting a series of strategies to reach individuals and groups with a low level of immunization, “trying” to adapt different measures based on the factors responsible for this low adherence, such as […] Misinformation, mistrust, or lack of clear information.”
For this reason, “some of these strategies included mobile vaccination teams or clinics, targeted communication strategies and outreach initiatives,” the example of the expert, and also spoke of providing vaccination incentives and mandatory vaccination for health workers.
Founded in 2005, ECDC is a European agency that advises countries on strengthening Europe’s ability to defend itself against infectious diseases.
*** Anna Matos Neves, Lusa Agency
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