Both the UK and France Report Record High Daily COVID-19 Cases

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] As the Omicron variant spreads rapidly, the number of new COVID-19 cases in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy has broken record highs.

According to The Guardian and others, the UK government announced on the 23rd (local time) that the number of new COVID-19 cases reached 119,789. This represents a 139% increase from just two weeks ago when the figure was around 50,000. The daily new cases surpassed 100,000 for the first time the previous day. The number of new deaths is 147.

Stefan Poyce, Medical Director of the National Health Service (NHS) England, stated, "(The NHS is) fighting Omicron." However, Sajid Javid, UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, said the day before that despite this surge, no new regulations including a shutdown would be imposed in the UK before Christmas.

In France, the number of new COVID-19 cases also reached 88,000, the highest since the pandemic began. Olivier V?ran, French Minister of Health, said, "The numbers are not good," and mentioned that COVID-19 related regulations may soon change. The number of deaths in the past 24 hours was recorded at 179. The number of patients admitted to intensive care units is 3,208.

On the same day, Italy's new cases also reached an all-time high of 44,595, increasing from 36,293 the previous day. The number of deaths also rose from 246 to 168.

The Italian government announced that Omicron, a new variant of COVID-19, is expected to become the dominant strain, and outdoor mask-wearing will be mandatory. Ffp2 masks must be worn in public places such as public transportation, theaters, and cinemas. Additionally, concerts and outdoor events are completely banned until January 31. New Year's Eve celebrations cannot be held. The operation of discotheques and dance clubs will also be closed.

However, despite the spread of COVID-19, there is an assessment that the warning signals have lessened. The UK Health Security Agency (HSA) stated that the probability of hospitalization for Omicron infections is 50-70% lower compared to the Delta variant. The probability of visiting the emergency room is 31-45% lower. Professor Andrew Hayward, a member of the UK government's new respiratory virus threat advisory group, evaluated on BBC Radio that "it has decreased from a hurricane to a very severe storm."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.