Ximo Puig confirms restrictive measures extended until March 1st

Thursday 11th February 2021 | MIKE SMITH

The President of the Generalitat Valenciana, Ximo Puig, has confirmed that the current measures which have been put in place to halt the spread of the COVID-19 infection will remain in place until March 1st. He made the announcement after a meeting of the Interdepartmental Committee for Prevention and Action against COVID-19.

The president justified the extension by explaining that whilst “the evolution of the data is positive“, the situation “is still not good“. The data and indicators of the coronavirus in the Comunidad Valenciana are still extreme (the latest 14-day IA rate is 777.07) whilst it is the recommendations of the experts as well as a warning to Spain from the World Health Organization that current restrictions must remain in place.

Puig acknowledged that the restrictions “limit rights and create unfair situations” but that “they cannot be relaxed because that would not be responsible“, confirming that “they will last as long as necessary“. He added that the great effort being made by the Valencian people in the last couple of weeks has resulted in what he considered to be “encouraging results“.

In this sense, he explained that over the last 15 days, there has been a 39% decrease in hospital admissions by those suffering from the infection and there are less than 3,000 in hospital at the moment. In addition, the incidence rate has dropped by 41% over the same period, a decrease of 682 points, which means that the region is currently registered 777 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

He also highlighted the fact that hospital discharges have “almost trebled” in the last week, with a rate of 2.5 discharges for every new case. In addition, over the last ten days, the number of active cases of COVID-19 has reduced by 30,000 whilst those being hospitalized have dropped by 2,000 in 17 days.

With regards to restrictions, he insisted that the measures have been working “faster than we expected” and urged citizens to keep going as “not every day is the same“. He also explained that the containment of cities and large towns in the region at the weekends has seen the infection rate drop by around 40% on average in the last 15 days.

PLAN RESISTIR and new aid to the tourism sector

During the press conference announcing the extension of restrictions, the president referred to the PLAN RESISTIR initiative with which the Generalitat Valenciana is aiming to compensate the sectors with a war chest of more than 400 million euros in direct aid.

Puig explained that he understood the discomfort of those affected and has insisted that the Generalitat support them financially in the “most flexible and efficient way possible” because “we have to save lives and also save the self-employed, SMEs, and jobs“.

In this sense, a new package of aid aimed at the tourist sector has already been confirmed through the Generalitat Official Gazette – click here for more information – in which some 18 million euros has been put aside to help 5,000 companies providing accommodation, travel agencies, restaurants, music festivals and other companies, who will be able to submit an application for direct aid from Monday 22nd February.

Vaccinations

Puig also referred to the vaccination campaign, which he described as “the great asset to overcome the pandemic” and “the door of hope“, and explained that more than 210,000 doses have already been administered in the Comunidad Valenciana, adding that he expected that 100,000 Valencians will have received their second dose by the end of the week.

In addition, the president assured that “much progress is being made in protecting the most vulnerable people” and that, from next week, the vaccination campaign will begin in the Day Centres as well as for those over 90 years of age and with a high level of dependency.

Information Source
Press Release – Generalitat Valenciana