Corona findings in Spain and Israel show no room for complacency
RESULTS from the final stage of a nationwide antibody study show some 5.2pc of Spain’s population has been exposed to the coronavirus, health officials said yesterday, confirming findings from earlier stages.
The study, which tested nearly 70,000 people across Spain three times over the past three months, found the virus’ prevalence had not altered significantly since preliminary results were published in May.
It also suggested that immunity to the virus can be short-lived, with 14pc of participants who tested positive for antibodies in the first stage subsequently testing negative in the last stage.
“Immunity can be incomplete, it can be transitory, it can last for just a short time and then disappear,” said Dr Raquel Yotti, director of Spain’s Carlos III Health Institute, which co-led the study.
The loss of immunity was most common among people who never developed symptoms.
Speaking at a news conference, she appealed to Spaniards to remain prudent, particularly those who had recovered from the virus and considered themselves immune.
“We can’t relax. We must keep protecting ourselves and protecting others,” she said.
In a sign that the risk is far from over, the regions of Galicia and Catalonia imposed local lockdowns over the weekend, isolating some 270,000 people after small-scale outbreaks were detected.
Catalonia, which was last year the most visited Spanish region by foreign tourists, sought yesterday to reassure visitors, saying the lockdown in the Segria county only affected 2.5pc of the region’s population.
Meanwhile, US coronavirus deaths topped 130,000 yesterday amid a surge in cases that has put President Donald Trump’s handling of the crisis under the microscope.
The overall rate of increase in US deaths has continued to trend downward despite case numbers surging to record levels in recent days, but health experts warn that fatalities are a lagging indicator, showing up weeks or even months after cases rise.
Arizona had 449 deaths in the last two weeks of June, up from 259 deaths in the first two weeks of the month. The state posted a 300pc rise in cases over the full month, the most in the country.
Nationally, cases are approaching three million, the highest tally in the world and double the infections reported in the second most-affected nation Brazil.
Israel yesterday reimposed a series of restrictions to fight a spike in infections, including the immediate closure of bars, night clubs, gyms and event halls.
In public remarks at a special cabinet session on the health crisis, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had to reverse course to avoid a wider lockdown that could paralyse its economy, where unemployment is just above 20pc.
“The pandemic is spreading – that’s as clear as day. It is rising steeply daily and it is dragging with it, contrary to what we had been told, a trail of critically-ill patients,” Mr Netanyahu said.
The hard-hit Australian state of Victoria recorded two deaths and its highest-ever daily increase in coronavirus cases as authorities prepared to close its border with New South Wales.
The death of the two men, one in his 60s and the other in his 90s, brings the national death toll from Covid-19 to 106.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said of the 127 new cases, 53 were among 3,000 people who had been confined by police to their apartments in nine public housing blocks since Saturday.
Mr Andrews said the high number of cases reflected a daily record number of tests exceeding 24,500.
He added that the state border with New South Wales will be closed from tonight in an agreement between the two state premiers and Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Mr Morrison had previously opposed states closing their borders.