A new report by the Economist praised Israel for being one of the few member states in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development to properly tackle the coronavirus pandemic by keeping a low level of contagion and adjusting swiftly to its spread.
The report noted that the advanced testing and the monitoring of patients, as well as the continued efforts to locate carriers as the pandemic was spreading without upending the health care system, helped the Jewish state suffer a low death toll.
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The report states: "The governments of Australia, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Israel, New Zealand, and Norway register the highest scores in our index and have performed best in managing the public health emergency caused by the pandemic.
"These countries have so far recorded low numbers of extra deaths during the pandemic, put solid tracking and testing programs in place, and continued to provide healthcare services to non-coronavirus patients. Overall, these countries appear to have succeeded in containing the pandemic because they reacted early and
swiftly. Not all of them introduced stringent lockdowns, but all implemented aggressive testing and tracing programs."
The report continued in describing why the response of these nations noteworthy. "This is a particularly impressive feat, given that in most of these countries over-65s account for a significant share of the population, making them vulnerable to severe coronavirus infection. Overall, these countries appear to have succeeded in containing the pandemic because they reacted early and swiftly. Not all of them introduced stringent lockdowns, but all implemented aggressive testing and tracing programs."
On Sunday, during yet another rally, the curfew was lifted as suddenly as it had been imposed. There was a sense of liberation and relief, of a surreal dream being over and a reality finally setting in. When we walked back from the park to meet friends for a drink, I could not let go of the thought: What kind of reality are we returning to?
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