Cristina Hodgson
THE Junta’s objective to try to ‘save’ the summer season is once again set for June, mirroring last year’s efforts.
The aim is to reach June with the lowest possible incidence rate, together with the highest number of people vaccinated against COVID-19 as well as maximum possible mobility within the region.
Vaccination plays a key role in the reduction of the pandemic, in the best case scenario, half the population of Andalucia will be vaccinated by the start of summer, however the continual setbacks with the COVID-19 vaccines manufactured by AstraZeneca and Janssen are stalling the government-set targets.
Confronted with the recurrent vaccine delays, the Junta is considering spacing out the second Pfizer or Moderna vaccine as much as possible, thus getting a first shot of vaccine into as many arms as possible, a speedy vaccine strategy already followed in the UK with success.
Last year, mobility between provinces in Andalucia did not open until June 8 and the summer beach plan—with 3,000 beach agents—began on the 15th of that month.
From then on, there were months of relative calm in the pandemic until the curve began to rise in August and significantly in September.
In June 2020, after months of strict confinement, the incidence rate was already negligible and hospitalisations did not reach a hundred, with less than thirty in ICU.
Now, however, there are 1,500 hospitalised and almost three hundred in intensive care.
Despite the high numbers, Andalucia health minister, Jesus Aguirre, insists that the ‘Easter effect’ which has unleashed the fourth coronavirus wave in Spain is less virulent than the third wave recorded after Christmas and this ‘fourth wave of Covid-19 should be the last.’
This optimism, together with the expected increase in vaccinations, means that a medium-term drop is on the cards, which could provide a margin to somehow ‘save’ the important tourist season in the region.
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