- In September, when the White House announced its long-awaited plan to welcome vaccinated European travellers, the United States was consumed by a Covid-19 surge that far outpaced Europe’s.
- But towards the east, that trend moves sharply downwards.
- Rules on travel in Europe have eased in recent months, and many countries have dialled back restrictions on gatherings — leading to concerns on the continent that the new surge in cases may be accompanied by a return of measures.
When the White House revealed its long-awaited plan to welcome vaccinated European visitors in September, the US was plagued by a Covid-19 outbreak that significantly outperformed Europe’s as reported by CNN.
Infections on the rise
At the time, the US had approximately three times the rate of new cases per capita as Europe.
While European governments plotted their paths back to normalcy, America was dealing with an increase in infections and warning of hospital overcrowding.
Infections are on the rise in most of the Schengen countries, a 26-country union with loosened entrance restrictions to the United States.
“According to one reputable forecast, we might see another half a million COVID-19 deaths throughout Europe and Central Asia by the beginning of February next year if we keep on this track,” Kluge warned, adding that 43 of the 53 countries on his patch could suffer high or exceptional stress on hospital beds.
The current wave in Europe has not resulted in as many deaths as the summer rise in the United States.
US death rates higher
“In some ways, the situation in Europe was to be expected.”
“We expected a spike in cases around this time of year,” Paul Wilmes, a professor at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, said.
Others argue that the relative success of some highly vaccinated countries, including Spain and Portugal, whose cases have remained at manageable levels despite the continent’s overall higher trend, can serve as an example to governments in Europe and worldwide.
“It’s happening in a lot of nations,” said Martin McKee, a professor of European public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. “But it’s not inevitable.”
“We need to investigate what’s going on and which policies are causing it… there are things that can be done.”
Vaccination hurdles
In the early months, the United States’ vaccine rollout exceeded that of Europe, but the two regions crossed paths in the summer when the EU’s rate of fresh injections administered surpassed that of the United States.
“There is a growing realisation that those who refuse to contribute to addressing the pandemic’s issues are putting others in danger,” McKee added. “However, the two regions face similar obstacles in the end.”
All but one of the 15 states in the United States with the lowest vaccination rates voted for Donald Trump in the 2020 election.
In Europe, a distinct gap in vaccine uptake has emerged; countries in the west and north of the continent have posted high rates, topped by Portugal and Spain in Europe’s Iberian peninsula, where 87% and 80% of the population are fully vaccinated, respectively.
In the east, however, the tendency is substantially downward.
The US falls behind in vaccination rates
Romania and Bulgaria have had particular difficulty administering dosages because they are not part of the Schengen travel region and hence are not covered by the US’ loosened entrance regulations.
“This isn’t new; we’ve seen it with various vaccines,” Wilmes added. “You see intrinsic levels of conformity in some countries to go along with vaccine campaigns, compared to others.”
“We know that vaccination has an effect on transmission; the more people immunised in a population, the more transmission can be limited,” he noted.
However, he emphasised that declining immunity has become a “concrete reality” for governments, posing a new issue.
Cultural differences
The other important pillar of the American strategy has been the use of face masks; on his first day in office, Biden made face masks mandatory on federal property and has since persuaded states to mandate their use in schools, offices, and other places.
Experts claim that Europe has avoided such a schism. “Mask-wearing is not seen as a violation of personal liberty in the same way as it is in other regions of the United States.
There is unquestionably a cultural divide,” Wilmes stated.
Some nations with high vaccination rates, including Portugal and Spain, have been careful about loosening mask-wearing regulations and still need them in specific situations.
US rules are stricter
In recent months, travel restrictions in Europe have loosened, and several governments have reduced limits on meetings, raising fears across the continent that the new increase in cases may be accompanied by a reintroduction of restrictions.
“Countries that have reduced measures have done so when case numbers have been low and many individuals have been vaccinated,” Wilmes explained. “We don’t have crystal balls; governments must make difficult judgement calls.”
Although the US has not adopted the EU’s system, Biden has pressed ahead with plans to impose vaccines for some industries and fields.
“While I would have preferred that no requirements be imposed, there are still far too many people who have not been vaccinated for us to be able to permanently end the pandemic.
As a result, I imposed requirements, which have shown to be effective.”
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Source: CNN
