Health Minister Olivier Veran told the weekly Le Journal du Dimanche on Saturday that the self-isolation time for people who test positive would be reduced from 10 days to seven on Monday – and to five days with a negative test result. could. Is.
“People without the vaccine will have to self-isolate for 10 days with possible exit after seven days,” Veran said.
France on Saturday reported 219,126 new infections and became the sixth country in the world to surpass the total of 10 million recorded cases of Covid-19.
The rule change also means that contacts of positive cases will not need to self-isolate until they have been fully vaccinated, but will have to be tested regularly, Veran said.
Changes have also been made to the time period in which people should receive their booster shot. Starting February 15, to be considered fully immunized, a booster dose will need to be taken four months after the second dose, instead of the current seven months.
In France, masks are mandatory for children aged six and older in public places such as railway stations, airports, markets and movie theatres.
The new rules will take effect Monday, when French lawmakers examine a bill that would ban access to restaurants, bars and other public places, according to a proposed law published on the website of the National Assembly.
The bill aims to replace the Health Pass system with Vaccine Passes, which require full vaccination or proof of recovery from COVID-19, meaning the unvaccinated will no longer be able to rely on a negative test to reach places . , Vaccine passes will not be required in the workplace or social services essential health care.
If adopted, the new rules are expected to come into effect from January 15.
Veran stressed the importance of vaccination as he expressed hope that France’s fifth wave “could be the last.”
“Omicron is so contagious that it will affect the entire population of the world. It will increase immunity, we will all be better armed later. But to have maximum chances on our side, we must urgently continue to vaccinate the planet, especially those In countries where access to doses is more complicated,” he said.
focus on vaccination
The bill would also empower employees at bars, restaurants and other locations to conduct identity checks on their customers if they “doubt” the authenticity of their vaccine passes or suspect they may be using someone else’s pass. Huh.
There could be penalties for establishments failing to check the authenticity of vaccine passes, and the bill would strengthen restrictions on fraud where the use of someone else’s pass could be punishable with a 1,000 euro fine ($1,137). Using a fake pass can result in a prison sentence of five years and a fine of 75,000 euros ($85,304).
Opposition lawmakers from the centre-right and centre-left said they would not oppose the bill, but the right-wing party National Rally and the far-left Untamed France have pledged to vote against it.
National rally leader Marine Le Pen tweeted, “Since the vaccine does not prevent either contracting or transmitting the virus, I call on the government to drop the health/vaccine pass.”
In November, Austria became the first Western country to announce that citizens would be required to receive a COVID-19 shot. Germany last month banned access to all except essential businesses such as supermarkets and pharmacies.