COVID-19: Epidemiological Update for May 20, 2021

Published on 20 May 2021

Key Points

In Week 19, epidemiological indicators continued to decline, but this had only a moderate impact on hospital capacity amid the gradual lifting of public health restrictions

Decrease in the incidence rate
Significant decrease in new hospitalizations and critical care admissions over the past two weeks
COVID-19-related mortality remains high
Mainland France: highest indicators in Île-de-France and Hauts-de-France
Overseas territories: indicators continue to rise in French Guiana

Variants

Proportion of suspected variants of concern (VOC) identified by screening RT-PCR:
- suspected cases of the 20I/501Y.V1 variant are the majority in mainland France at 77.9%
- suspected cases of the 20H/501Y.V2 or 20J/501Y.V3 variants at 5.9%, with regional variations
More information on variants

Prevention

Contribution of the contact-tracing system to limiting the spread of the epidemic
Vaccination, as of May 18, 2021:
- 21,133,653 people have received at least one dose, vaccination coverage of 31.5%
- 9,866,934 people fully vaccinated, vaccination coverage of 14.7%
Individuals must continue to consistently follow preventive measures and limit contact
If symptoms develop, immediate isolation is required, and a test must be taken as soon as possible
Reminder of the importance of vaccination for priority groups who have not yet been vaccinated

The SI-DEP information system has just been updated to count a patient only once when they are tested multiple times, as may be the case with enhanced monitoring of variants. Indicators have been recalculated nationwide. This results in a decrease in the total number of confirmed cases, the positivity rate, and the incidence rate. This decrease should therefore not be interpreted as an exceptional drop in the number of cases, given that the epidemic pressure is declining. This change does not alter the overall assessment of the epidemic’s dynamics.