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Updated November 18th, 2021 at 14:04 IST

Belgium PM Alexander De Croo reinforces COVID-19 restrictions amid rise in cases

As COVID-19 cases rise in Belgium, the government announced that employees need to do work from home for 4 days in a five-days work week till 12 December.

Reported by: Apoorva Kaul
Belgium
Image: AP/Pixabay | Image:self
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Amid the rise in COVID-19 cases, Belgium authorities reinforced the use of face masks in public places. The government announced that employees need to work from home for 4 days out of a five-day workweek till 12th December, according to AP. While reinstating the COVID-19 measures Belgium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said, “The alarm signals are flashing red.”

Alexander De Croo announced people need to wear facemasks in crowded places and it has been made mandatory for people aged 10 and above, according to AP. Earlier, the use of facemasks had been limited to those aged 12 and over and work from home was a recommendation and not mandatory in Belgium. In order to control the spread of COVID-19, the government has reinstated rules in nightclubs, restaurants and bars, wherein people need to wear facemasks and must have a negative coronavirus test report in addition to checking for full vaccination status. 

COVID-19 measures reinstated in Belgium

While announcing the new measures in the country amid the rise in COVID-19 cases, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said, “If we want to avoid another lockdown, we have to show a sense of responsibility,” as per AP. Furthermore, the Belgium PM highlighted the need for efforts that need to be made in order to extend the booster vaccination campaign to all the people in the country. As per AP report, a rise of 27% in COVID-19 cases has been reported in the past week, reaching more than 10,000 coronavirus cases in a day. Furthermore, hospitalisations during the same time increased by more than 21% and the ICU beds also rose to 28% resulting in ICU beds reaching 557. In order to step up the vaccination campaign, the government earlier this week announced the decision of making vaccines mandatory for healthcare workers. 

COVID-19 situation in Belgium

According to the Belgium Health Department, as on 18 November, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Belgium has topped 1,543,299. The fatalities reported due to coronavirus in Belgium is 26,484. According to the Belgium Health Department, 8,777,117 people have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine while 8,634,053 people have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

Inputs from AP

Image: AP/Pixabay

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Published November 18th, 2021 at 14:04 IST

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