How isolating and infected people can vote // COVID-19 infections soar with return to school
Portuguese news in English on Sunday, January 23, 2022.
By the numbers
Since this time last month, the number of daily cases (on a 14-day average) is about eight times higher and the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital has doubled. Deaths have also almost doubled in that time but somehow the number of people in intensive care has stayed almost completely flat. There was a bit of a peak (174) earlier this week but the number has dropped back again to 154, actually one fewer than on December 22. Nine in every 10 Portuguese people are now fully vaccinated and 35.9% of the country has received a booster, Público reports.
I’m going to be away next week and unable to send out an update, but I’ll see you all the following weekend. Thanks for understanding.
Isolating and infected people can still vote
Voters stuck in quarantine because of the coronavirus will still be able to head to the polls on January 30, Euronews reports, in English. Authorities urged those quarantining — believed to be about 600,000 people — to leave their vote until the last hour of the day, from 6pm-7pm, Público reports. The gap in the polls between the incumbent Socialist Party (PS) and main rival Social Democratic Party (PSD) has narrowed to just four percentage points (PS with 37% and PSD with 33%), Público reports. That puts Prime Minister António Costa further away from the “absolute majority” he finally appealed for earlier in the week, after weeks of avoiding the term. You can watch the nine party leaders responding to eight key themes, courtesy of Público, if you’re wanting to practice your Portuguese.
Infections soar with return to school
The number of children and teenagers with COViD-19 has risen sharply since school went back, with almost 10,000 cases a day just in those under 20, Público reports. Experts said a drop in cases among those in their 20s and an increase in those aged in their late 30s and 40s showed the students were clearly “bringing the virus home” with them. Epidemiologist Manuel Carmo Gomes said there could be as many as 7 million people infected by April. He said while the severity of Omicron was nothing like previous variants, such high numbers would still likely cause serious impacts on the hospital system. Microbiologist João Paulo Gomes told Diário de Notícias there was reason to be optimistic. “We’re more and more immune to the virus, whether through the natural infection process or through vaccination, and, I would say, although it’s impossible to make a prediction, that the scientific community is unanimous in this optimism,” he said. Even so, experts are struggling to say what will come next, with the Omicron variant making it hard to even predict when the current surge in cases will peak, Diário de Notícias reports.
Booster shots open for over-35s
Booster shots have opened up on the online portal to everyone aged 35 or over, and everyone over 18 who received the single-shot Janssen jab. Some, such as Portuguese Red Cross president and former health minister Ana Jorge, are calling for the eligibility to be widened to all adults more quickly. She told Público such a move would increase the immune capacity of the general population and help to control the spread of the virus. Kids as young as five have now been eligible for vaccines for more than a month but the process hasn’t been anywhere as successful yet as the adult vaccination program, Público reports. Fewer than half of those aged five to nine have been vaccinated, with only 30% of five-year-olds.
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In brief
New virus lineage described by some as ‘stealth Omicron’ An explainer on the BA.2 lineage, which has already overtaken Omicron BA.1 in Denmark and been dubbed a “variant under investigation” — one level below “variant of concern”. (The Independent, in English)
Businesses see positive signs in sale season. Some sectors have seen better sales figures than 2019 but there are warnings it will still be a challenging year for retail. (Dinheiro Vivo)
A quarter of Portuguese families make half of the income. In 2019, the richest 25% in Portugal claimed 45.9% of the income, a jump from 42% after a decade of decreasing inequality. (Dinheiro Vivo)
On a lighter note
There may be no such thing as a free lunch, but fortunately we live in a country where cheap lunches are in abundance. Generally, the further you are from the capital, the easier it is to find an excellent, cheap bite to eat (bom e barato, as the Portuguese say). But for those living in Lisbon, Time Out has a few suggestions: the best restaurants in Lisbon under €10. I can’t promise something for absolutely everyone, but you’ll find everything from dirty, delicious bifanas, ribs and Portuguese classics through to Chinese, Indian and vegan options.
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