Portugal Situation Report Wednesday 24th November 2021
Introduction
Good morning – We are now seeing an emerging increase in the number of hospitalisations due to Covid-19 as well as those in ICU, compared to the last few weeks where the figures were marginal increases in hospitalisations and a stabilisation in the numbers in ICU. Regretfully deaths, which had been fairly stable below 10 a day, are also showing signs of increasing.
However, we are nowhere near the situation in many other European countries and there are no indications of liniment lockdowns (as some have suggested), but we can expect the government to adopt measures to try and contain the situation at the Council of Ministers meeting tomorrow. The Prime Minister, António Costa, yesterday refused to anticipate new measures to contain the covid-19 pandemic, sending a possible announcement to Thursday, when the Council of Ministers meets as well as consulting the parties.
There is of course much speculation on what these measures maybe, but it is expected that it will take into account the proposals made at the recent Infarmed meeting, which we covered on this Facebook page, the fact the at the current Situation of Alert is due to finish on 30th November, as well leading the way for measures that may need to be put in place over Christmas and New Year. The latter is more difficult as much can change in the intervening period.
We wait and see and as usual we will closely monitor and report on developments.
One thing is for certain however, and that is the importance of the Covid-19 booster vaccination coupled together with the flu vaccination. Government is rolling these out as quickly as supplies permit, and I would urge people who are now eligible to have these vaccinations as soon as possible. If you are over 65 years and have made a self-scheduling appointment but did not receive an SMS but the scheduled date go to the vaccination centre at the times open for “casa aberta” (Open house) and they should vaccinate you. I did this on Monday and had both vaccinations.
We are now well into the lead up period to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, where there are not only many bargains available, but unfortunately many scams. Whereas Black Friday was mainly a physical affair where people jostled other in large queues to grab bargains, the two have now become somewhat blurred, with most of the shopping being conducted on-line
Black-Friday-and-Cyber-Monday-shopping-scams 
This development has increased opportunities for scammers, through the use of false websites often closely replicating well know companies and brands. It is very important at this time of year in particular to research carefully before deciding what to buy and in particular, whom to buy it from. Check websites closely – does it look genuine? – avoid clicking on links from companies or persons you have never heard of; pay by secure means and do not pay for items using public Wi-Fi, are some of the tips to ensure you are not a victim of crime.
The bottom line if a bargain seems too good to be true then it usually is!
We are seeing, or should I say feeling some changes in weather conditions. On Monday night temperatures in some central and norther parts of the mainland dropped to below OC, and even in the Algarve minimum temperatures were around 7C to 8C. A reminder therefore to take extra care on the roads especially if you are not used to driving in icy conditions, and also take steps to remain warm.
The winter is generally flu time and wet and cold conditions do not help.
Have a cold but pleasant day
Headlines
Unvaccinated people are fuelling pandemic and increasing “vaccination hesitation”, says European commissioner
Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said that “the entire European Union” is faced with “a worryingly growing number of cases” and stressed that “I would like to start by sending a very clear message about the role of vaccines, because the evidence is clear”.
The covid-19 pandemic is currently being driven mainly by the unvaccinated and the growing number of cases is, in turn, increasing the “vaccination hesitation”, warned this Monday the European Commissioner for Health in the European Parliament.
Speaking at a debate in the Strasbourg hemicycle on covid-19, Commissioner Stella Kyriakides began by assuming that “the entire European Union” is faced with “a worryingly growing number of cases” and underlined that “I would like to start by sending a very message, about the role of vaccines, because the evidence is clear.”
“Vaccination works and remains the most effective tool we have to keep people safe. There is no doubt that our vaccines are effective against severe forms of the disease […] and even with the dominant Delta variant, with the highest transmissibility and severity, deaths are still prevented thanks to effective vaccines authorized for use in the EU.” he argued, stressing that this is supported “by all the scientific evidence”.
The European Commissioner for Health then noted that, currently, “the pandemic is mainly driven by the unvaccinated, and the growing numbers are unfortunately fuelling vaccine hesitation “, and argued that it is necessary to “take a firm stand”, fighting misinformation (or fake news) and raising awareness that “vaccination remains a fundamental weapon” in the “arsenal” against the pandemic.
The commissioner admitted that, “at the same time, until sufficiently high vaccination rates have been achieved and the situation is under control, relevant non-pharmaceutical interventions must remain in place where necessary”, and noted that “many States -members have already started to reintroduce certain restrictive measures, often relying on the EU’s covid-19 digital certificate to allow secure access to public areas”.
New measures to fight the pandemic: Costa continues to hear from the parties this Wednesday and speaks to the country on Thursday
The prime minister continues to receive today, the parties with parliamentary representation on the epidemiological situation in Portugal, at a time when the country registers an increase in the incidence and transmission rates (Rt) of covid-19, before for the Government to approve measures against covid-19, which could happen at the Council of Ministers on Thursday.
On Tuesday, the prime minister met with the Liberal Initiative, Chega, PEV, PAN, CDS-PP, PCP and BE.
At the end of Friday’s Infarmed meeting, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, stated that there is still a “total combination of political power bodies” in the response to covid-19, but declined to talk about measures , forwarding this decision to the Government, after consulting the parties.
As for the measures to be adopted, the head of state said that “the experts presented what they considered essential for this phase” and that “the decision on this matter will naturally belong to the Government”, which “will listen to the political parties and will decide”.
On Tuesday, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa rejected the idea of a new confinement to respond to the increase in covid-19 cases, saying that the “situation does not point to that” and “there is no comparison” with that of “a year ago”.
Covid-19
Confirmed Cases: 1,126,318 (+2560)
Number of admitted: 649 (+21)
Number of ICU admitted: 93 (+0)
Deaths: 18,353 (+14)
Recovered: 1,062,195 (+2535)
Active cases: 45,770 (+11)
Today you have side by side the figures of 2021 and 2020 on the same exact day.
TRENDS
The number of new cases on Tuesday is the highest since Aug. 25.
The deaths were in people over 80 years old (+4), between 70 and 79 years old (+7), between 60 and 69 years old (+2) between 50 and 59 years old (+1)
Health
Lisbon: Carlos Moedas promises to inaugurate the “largest vaccination centre in the country” on the day of the Restoration of Independence
On December 1st, a new space for vaccination against covid-19 and against the flu will be opened at the Lisbon International Fair (FIL), in Parque das Nações, announced this Monday the president of the CML. The perspective is to inoculate at least “six thousand people a day”
On December 1, the FIL will open – predictably in pavilion 4 – what Carlos Moedas says is “the largest vaccination centre in the country”, in response to the increase in the number of infections in the metropolitan area of the capital, said this Monday the Mayor of Lisbon to CNN Portugal, at the entrance to the launch party of the new cable channel.
“We will have the capacity to double the number of vaccines that we give each day”, Coins told CNN, which will mean vaccinate 6 thousand users daily at a time when booster vaccinations are administered, namely, the so-called 3rd dose for older and for risk groups, or the 2nd dose for those who received the Janssen vaccine for more than three months.
“If we add the flu vaccine we can reach 9,000 people a day,” added Moedas. “We are working day and night” so that the centre can open on the scheduled date, said the mayor.
Social sector professionals and firefighters are starting to be vaccinated today
Social sector professionals and firefighters involved in the transport of patients will begin this Monday to be vaccinated with the third dose of the vaccine against covid-19.
After health professionals began to be inoculated last week, about 28,000 firefighters who perform the operational function of pre-hospital transport will receive a booster dose of the vaccine. According to the Ministry of Internal Administration, the selection and order of vaccination is the responsibility of the respective commander of each fire brigade, having as reference the operational criteria defined by the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority.
In addition to firefighters and health and social sector professionals, people over 65 are currently being vaccinated in Portugal with the third dose of the vaccine
An item that drew my attention yesterday was concerning the forecasting of earthquakes. Unlike the sky, the Earth’s interior is not transparent. And that’s why a seismologist like Fernando Carrilho faces very different challenges from colleagues from other departments at the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere (IPMA), who can relate the previous day’s forecasts to the clouds they see on the horizon. “There are earthquakes originating from depths of 10, 20, and 100 kms or more… and the existing technologies do not allow us to know what is happening in these places”, according to the head of the Geophysics Division at IPMA.
Second-generation vaccines that already allow blocking the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 should arrive within the next year.
A cancer that “was rare”, is becoming “more frequent” and has registered a “30% increase” in the last decade.
Flying to Milan, London or Berlin on TAP no longer entitles you to a sandwich or a pastel de nata and a drink in economy class. For more than a year, the Portuguese air carrier stopped offering light meals, snacks or snacks and drinks free of charge in economy class on medium-haul trips.
The Minister of Internal Administration said yesterday that it was thanks to the initial muscular and effective intervention in the vast majority of cases, of the Fire Department, of the heli-transported teams of the Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR) and of the Sapadores Florestais teams, that in more than 80% of the recorded occurrences, the burned area was contained to less than 1 hectare.
Well we had a taste of some bad weather recently with 5 days of rain in most areas of the mainland. The emergency services were out and about attending to over 1300 occurrences during this period. There were plenty of warnings beforehand and I hope that everyone took heed of these. However, some clearly did not do so and we saw from photos and reports of the number of cars damaged by fallen trees. The winter season officially starts at the end of this month and we can expect further rain and winds as is normal during this period.
Given our remit of safety and security, inevitably we have to sometimes deal with, and communicate, difficult and challenging topic, which do not always make happy reading. We are conscious of this and therefore, we try to balance this with positive and good news, which is important during challenging times. Some examples in the last two days were our posts concerning: the “Portuguese tradition to ask for Pão Por Deus”, and “Big wave surfing at Nazaré”, which have so far reached around 26,400 and 33,600 respectively, as well as the “1755 Tsunami Simulation post, with an engagement of nearly 3,000 reach over 17,000 so far”.
Lisbon, Nov 02, 2021 (Lusa) – The free and unlimited testing plan for covid-19 in Lisbon was extended until the end of the year, the City Council announced today, recalling that the program is open to the entire population, whether or not resident in the capital.
As long as the emergency plan is activated, the Paços do Concelho building is closed, with the suspension of face-to-face service, which will be carried out exclusively by telephone and digital means.
This “was not a strike associated with the visit of any minister to parliament, it was intended to convey to the Government and the country that public administration workers do not conform with the devaluation they have been subjected to nor with the degradation of public services that it was not started by the current Government, but continued by it”, said Mário Nogueira, at a press conference held this afternoon, after a meeting of the Fenprof secretariat that took place in the morning.
According to the same source, the unemployed population (331.3 thousand) increased by 1.9% in relation to the previous month and decreased by 6% in relation to the three months before and 18.2% in relation to the same month of the previous year.
It was announced yesterday that Vice Admiral Gouveia e Melo was the winner of the National Bioethics Award, a distinction made by the National Bioethics Association, with the support of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto (FMUP). According to the note sent to newsrooms this Tuesday, the “choice was unanimous” and is a reflection of the coordination of the task force of vaccination against covid-19, which the jury considered to be “an example”.
In addition to the early identification of cases, the main variant detected among cases registered in the last month is influenza A, which, according to the ECDC, disproportionately affects the elderly and is associated with lower vaccine efficacy.
Tuesday’s publication warns that countries’ current pledges would reduce carbon by only about 7.5% by 2030, far less than the 45% cut scientists say is needed to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C, the aim of the Cop26 summit that opens in Glasgow this Sunday.
“The Prize, awarded by the National Bioethics Association, with the support of the FMUP, distinguishes the vice-admiral for the ‘personal integrity with which he performed his duties, as well as for the ‘demonstrated organizational and planning qualities’. The award is also intended to be a recognition ‘for the example it has given to Portuguese society, an example of public service and dedication to common causes’”, can be read in the note. “Known for the decisive role he played in a critical phase of the pandemic, Vice Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo was, for the jury of this Award, “a natural and unanimous choice”.