“The message has always been: do it all,” Hans Kluge, the WHO’s regional director for Europe, said last week. As a result, nine central and eastern European countries currently feature in the EU’s highest 10 coronavirus daily death rates. Romania and Bulgaria have the bloc’s highest daily fatality rates at around 22 per million – more than 30 times the rates in France, Spain and Portugal. In western Europe, the question now is whether countries can curb this latest wave without having to resort to full-scale lockdowns. But public health and social measures were equally vital, he said, adding that the WHO estimated 95% universal mask use in Europe could save almost 200,000 lives.

Source: The Guardian November 14, 2021 05:01 UTC