South Africa accuses UK and others of ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to new variant
Travel restrictions on southern African states imposed by countries after discovery of B.1.1.529 already harming economy
Nick Dall in Cape Town and Lizzy Davies
Fri 26 Nov 2021 13.09 EST
...
Should the new variant prove to be highly transmissible, there are fears that a fourth wave could materialise – and in a more dangerous form than had been anticipated.
However, Dr Angelique Coetzee, chair of the South African Medical Association and a practising GP based in Pretoria, said it was “premature” to make predictions of a health crisis.
“It’s all speculation at this stage. It may be it’s highly transmissible, but so far the cases we are seeing are extremely mild,” she said. “Maybe two weeks from now I will have a different opinion, but this is what we are seeing. So are we seriously worried? No. We are concerned and we watch what’s happening. But for now we’re saying, ‘OK: there’s a whole hype out there. [We’re] not sure why.’”
Coetzee said she would like to see the government embark on a push to get more people vaccinated, but added: “Unfortunately, it’s not only the responsibility of the government; it’s the responsibility of the public as well … You can only ask people so many times to go and get vaccinated, and if you don’t listen, then there’s consequences, and then you have to take the consequences.”
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...nt-vaccination
Travel restrictions on southern African states imposed by countries after discovery of B.1.1.529 already harming economy
Nick Dall in Cape Town and Lizzy Davies
Fri 26 Nov 2021 13.09 EST
...
Should the new variant prove to be highly transmissible, there are fears that a fourth wave could materialise – and in a more dangerous form than had been anticipated.
However, Dr Angelique Coetzee, chair of the South African Medical Association and a practising GP based in Pretoria, said it was “premature” to make predictions of a health crisis.
“It’s all speculation at this stage. It may be it’s highly transmissible, but so far the cases we are seeing are extremely mild,” she said. “Maybe two weeks from now I will have a different opinion, but this is what we are seeing. So are we seriously worried? No. We are concerned and we watch what’s happening. But for now we’re saying, ‘OK: there’s a whole hype out there. [We’re] not sure why.’”
Coetzee said she would like to see the government embark on a push to get more people vaccinated, but added: “Unfortunately, it’s not only the responsibility of the government; it’s the responsibility of the public as well … You can only ask people so many times to go and get vaccinated, and if you don’t listen, then there’s consequences, and then you have to take the consequences.”
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...nt-vaccination
Comment