New corona infections drop by another 8.5% in week

Luxembourg recorded 324 new coronavirus infections in the week that ended on 6 June, an almost 10% drop from the preceding seven days, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday despite a gradual easing of social distancing measures.

However, a further 217 people tested positive from the rapid tests that are now widely available in supermarkets and pharmacies and which people use to gain entry into restaurants or bars where they are required for indoor seating.

These rapid tests are not included in the overall numbers, the ministry said, because they can easily generate false positives.

The number of active infections dropped to 675 on Sunday, more than 200 less than reported a week earlier, the ministry said. There were just four people in intensive care with the disease.

However on Wednesday, the country reported 52 new infections and the total number of infections had gone up to 746.

Health workers handed out close to 44,000 vaccines during the week, almost double compared to the week before. A total of 163,500 people are now fully vaccinated. However, with close to 41% of the population having received at least one shot, the inoculation rate is slightly lower than the EU average at almost 42%. France at 42%, Belgium at 45% and Germany at 46% are all doing better, according to Our World in Data website.

Starting this weekend, Luxembourg plans to further ease virus-fighting restrictions on where and how many people can gather, prime minister Xavier Bettel said last Wednesday, while emphasising that fully restoring social freedoms would depend on wide acceptance of vaccinations.

New rules expected to be voted in Parliament in the coming days would end an overnight curfew that has been in place for seven months and allow restaurant and bar owners to decide their closing times.

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