Catalan Government will not relax any measures over Easter and extends current measures until April 9

The Procicat has agreed this Thursday to extend the current restrictions to halt the advance of covid-19 until April 9 and, therefore, the Government will not relax any measures over Easter, explained the secretary general of the Department of Health, Marc Ramentol. He added that Catalonia is living a scenario of "transition" and has begun a "timid growth" in the number of daily infections.

This decision is based on data which shows, on the one hand, an increase in mobility, taking it to levels similar to those observed towards the end of summer. This increases the risk of encounters between more than one cohabitation bubble. "We cannot monitor this yet, because the impact data are deferred," said Ramentol. On the other hand, the data shows ICU occupation is no longer falling and, in recent days, has even increased slightly. "It does not denote a clear downward trend. It is a situation that worries us, because it has no correlation with the daily infections or admissions in conventional wards," he said.

Gatherings during Easter

Maximum six people in the open air and four indoors

CFor his part, the On the other hand, Catalan minister of Home Affairs Miquel Sàmper issued a reminder that during Easter, as established by the Spanish government, the number of people per gathering is reduced to a maximum of six people outdoors and four in closed spaces. Sàmper added that the forecast is that between 340,000 and 500,000 vehicles leave the metropolitan area of Barcelona between Friday and Saturday.

The third wave leaves more seriously ill than the second

They are older, spend more days in ICU and require more tracheotomies

The Secretary of Public Health, Josep Maria Argimon, explained that the authorities expected that admissions to the ICU continue to fall these days and, instead, this decline is not occurring. The figures are stagnant or even slightly up. "We will analyse this phenomenon well," he said. In this sense, Argimon has pointed out that throughout the third wave, the stay in ICU has grown two and a half days on average compared to the second wave. Patients' average age has also increased from 63 to 65. More tracheotomies are also being performed, he pointed out.