Life has finally returned to normal after an incredibly challenging coronavirus year. We are again able to gather indoors, travel, reopen businesses and spend time outdoors without masks on.
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The reality in Israel is very different compared to the rest of the world. Most countries are still struggling to curb the pandemic, and governments continue to impose restrictions and even lockdowns.
Without a doubt, Israel's success can primarily be attributed to its vaccination campaign. Israel was the first and fastest country in the world to have vaccinated most of its population.
At the Health Ministry, we understand that the coronavirus is not gone and will probably remain part of our lives for a while. We continue to fight its spread with professionality and without creating unnecessary panic. Every action we take, we consider carefully and thoroughly in advance.
We do our utmost to keep the morbidity rate as low as possible, without violating human rights or the rights of Israelis, and without halting people's lives and denying them the right to make a living.
For us to succeed in this, we must all work together and get immunized. Vaccination provides protection 20 times higher compared to an unvaccinated individual. What a dramatic piece of data.
The delta variant is much more contagious than any other coronavirus strain detected in the past, and therefore what we see in Israel, as well as the rest of the world, is a spike in infections.
A more remarkable difference, however, lies in the gap between the mortality rate among the vaccinated and unvaccinated population, the latter being more affected by the virus. Although the ministry recorded a spike in morbidity, the death rate among inoculated Israelis remains low. The same is being observed in the rest of the world.
Does it mean we can allow ourselves to become complacent? Absolutely not. We do not yet have unequivocal data on this matter. That is why the ministry is being cautious, but without enforcing heavy restrictions on the public and commerce.
We understand full well that the harsh consequences of the strict guidelines that were previously imposed on our lives, and therefore, for now, we hold back from reinforcing any rules that would hurt people's rights and income.
Instead, we focus on minimizing viruses being brought into Israel via returnees through Ben Gurion Airport. In addition to the previous government's designation of forbidden travel destinations, we have also introduced the element of enforcement, with police officers making sure that travelers without a permit do not board a plane to a forbidden destination and fining any person who visits such a country.
Besides such travel supervision, we also work to enforce self-isolation when needed and protect the high-risk population.
For the ministry to be able to continue keeping restrictions to a bare minimum and protecting your health as best as we can, it must step up the vaccination rate. This is what's critical when it comes to curbing the pandemic and avoiding further restrictions.
Beating the coronavirus is a task for us all, for every Israeli over the age of 12.
Getting inoculated is a responsible choice that benefits not only the individual but the entire nation. The vaccinated person protects himself and his loved ones from the dangerous symptoms of COVID-19. He or she guards the ability to lead a normal life in Israel and supports the worldwide efforts to curb the pandemic.
Israel has enough doses for everyone, compared to the rest of the world, which struggles to supply its citizens with vaccines. Some countries will need to wait months before the doses they ordered arrive, due to the overwhelming demand for inoculations. Many countries have no vaccines at all. Whereas in Israel, anyone can go to a healthcare provider and receive a vaccination free of charge.
I would like to point out again: The vaccines are effective and safe to use according to the most stringent of criteria.
Israel has more than a million adults and teenagers who are not yet vaccinated. This is one of our weakest points. We must reduce this number. Together. I call on you – parents, teenagers, and adults – not to wait until the very last moment.
Let's all take responsibility for this, to protect ourselves and our loved ones, to be able to make a living, travel around without restrictions and continue living a normal life.
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