Coronavirus morbidity continued to decrease in Israel with 15,297 new cases reported by the Health Ministry on Friday morning. Altogether, 93,671 Israelis were screened for the disease, which puts the infection rate at 16.33%
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There are 152,503 active cases in the country with 1,857 patients hospitalized. Of those, 827 are in serious condition, down by 59 from the day before. Currently, 37,015 Israelis are in quarantine.
Israelis continued to get vaccinated, with 708,952 having been inoculated with four doses, 4,459,073 with three, 6,116,553 with two, and 6,697,307 with one shot since the launch of the national immunization campaigns.
Israel has reported 3,517,258 cases, including 9,800 deaths, since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020. Of those, 231 died in the past seven days, a 41% decrease from the week before.
As the Omicron wave continues to subside, and the government is poised to remove most restrictions on public life, Coronavirus Commissioner Salman Zarka warned on Thursday that declaring victory would be premature, seeing as "the daily caseload remains high."
"The B.12 [Omicron subvariant] can lead to serious illness among the at-risk population. It is important to protect the elderly population and get vaccinated with the third and fourth doses. We will continue to have different protective systems in place and work together with authorities."
Zarka also said, that "the working assumption is that the Omicron wave is not the last one. We will investigate the fifth [current] wave, learn lessons, and be prepared for the sixth one as well."
Nevertheless, the health chief stressed that "we need to find a way to live alongside COVID. Lockdowns and restrictions are not relevant. It is our duty to adapt our policy as morbidity decreases, which is exactly what we are doing."
Also on Thursday, the health committee that advises the Health Ministry proposed an outline that would no longer require Israelis to present proof of vaccination or recovery when entering event halls and shopping malls, cancel mandatory screening in schools, and even testing of individuals who came into contact with a confirmed COVID carrier, but do not exhibit any symptoms (with the exclusion of at-risk Israelis and nursing home workers).
In related news, a study by researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that individuals who recovered from COVID have a significantly higher chance of experiencing mental health problems, such as depression and PTSD.
The comprehensive study – published in the British Medical Journal – said that disorders arose within a year after recovery in patients who exhibit mild or serious symptoms. It included 153 848 participants.
Researchers found that COVID recoverees were 60% more likely to suffer from mental health problems than those who were not infected. This led to increased use of medication on their behalf and, in turn, an increased risk of substance abuse.
"We know from previous studies and personal experiences that the immense challenges of the past two years of the pandemic have had a profound effect on our collective mental health," Ziyad Al-Aly, a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University who authored the study, said.
"But while we've all suffered during the pandemic, people who have had COVID-19 fare far worse mentally. We need to acknowledge this reality and address these conditions now before they balloon into a much larger mental health crisis."
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