Alexandru Rafila made an official announcement regarding the increase in cases of Coronavirus in Romania, being asked about the aggressiveness of the new BA.4 and BA.5 substrains, he stated that this is reduced, according to the latest studies, so theoretically the number of hospitalizations it should continue to be reduced in Romania.
Alexandru Rafila recommends people to wear a protective mask in closed and congested spaces since the number of new cases has doubled from one week to the next, and will continue to increase, but for now the reintroduction of preventive measures in Romania.
"Yes, that's what all the scientific articles look like up to this moment (ed. I ask if the new BA.4 and BA.5 substrains of Omicron are less aggressive) ... . Always if you have an increase in cases, the number of cases in ATI automatically increases, it's a matter of mathematics, it's a proportion. If the number of cases in ATI increased faster than the general increase in the number of cases, then we could talk about a more severe strain.
If the increase in the number of cases in ATI is similar, or lower than that recorded in the last Omicron wave, then we cannot discuss a greater severity. We did not pose the problem of introducing these recommendations into the mandatory area, the ministry, you know, has always acted preventively, preferring dialogue and supporting the population, rather than supporting authoritarian measures that sometimes did not achieve their goal, and which also created a state of irritation.
We are for partnership, understanding with people who have to protect their own health and that of those they are around. The personal examples are good, you see, we came here with a mask just to give you a signal, although we don't have any cases of infection with the Coronavirus in the ministry, I think at the moment. This does not mean that we should not be cautious.
Speaking of cases, to give you some more figures, because I know they are useful for you, about a third of the number of cases registered at national level in the last week were in Bucharest, around 2.500 cases, and the other counties Cluj and Brasov were affected, with several hundred cases.
It is clear that Bucharest remains... it is the capital, it is much bigger, intense traffic, interactions... It is clear that Bucharest remains the epicenter, and for this reason the first measures we have taken are in the capital, and until the end of the week we will also finalize the mode of action at the national level."
