Earlier in the week, we told you how COVID-19 variants have been confirmed in Belize. Among them is the the Delta variant, which has proven to be more infectious and more deadly in other parts of the world.
And that's why tonight, Doctors are asking for a stricter curfew and other measures.
In a press release, the Belize Medical and Dental Association asks for the curfew to be extended from 7pm until 5am daily.
Their release says, quote, "We believe that further restrictions must be implemented urgently…to mitigate the spread of the virus…We have observed that lately our population has become lax and we are now dealing with the consequences of this". End quote.
This afternoon, we got a chance to speak with Doctor Fernando Cuellar about the recent surge, and he told us that the Belizeans need to take proactive steps:
Dr. Fernando Cuellar - Internist
"It's not just my individual concern, but indeed concern amongst the medical community, as expressed by my colleagues in the hallways, in the chats, and so forth, where we see these numbers keep going up. To be more technical, we'd say that our daily positivity rate has gone up beyond what we would call the trigger to do certain restrictions. I think, yesterday, our positivity rate was between 7 and 8%, which is indeed high. And in raw numbers, we saw for example that the number of positive cases yesterday was around 90. If we're to do the math, to everyone that shows positive, especially with the delta variant, we can safely assume that there are somewhere between 5 and 7 other cases connected to that one. So, if we do the math, 90 by 5, that's 450 cases easily that are positive in Belize City alone. So, if we don't do something now, we might regret it later. As a matter of fact, we will regret it later because it's not just our experience. It's an experience all over the world. We see what's going on with our 2 neighbours right now, and I can show you the real, raw video about the hospitals being overwhelmed in Guatemala City, in Mexico City, in other cities of these countries. We see what's happening in Jamaica, in Trinidad, where indeed the numbers have risen enough to have them pull the trigger for other restrictions. So, I'm calling on, 1, the Belizean people, my fellow, Belizeans, to indeed start adhering more to the basics, which the proper face mask-wearing, washing of hands, and physical distance. I'm calling on employers to be more strict with their workplaces. Start thinking about maybe rotating employees. I am calling on the business establishments to do as much as we can, and not just wait until the government comes and tells them to do these things. We've been through this before, and for the record, I am not one of those - I would definitely advocate against a total lockdown. That is counterproductive. WHO has seen the numbers and the effects worldwide, and so, a total lockdown is counterproductive. We're not advocating [for that] but, we do need to have better restrictions, follow the curfew, even thinking about increasing the curfew hours, and doing these general measures that we are suggesting."
Apart from recommending that the be extended to 7:00 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily, the doctors don't think that indoor dining should be allowed at restaurants; and also that Bars and Casinos should not be allowed to open. They are also recommending strict supervision of public transportation to ensure that safety measures are being implemented.
And, On the subject of in-person classes resuming in a few weeks, the BMDA thinks that face-to-face learning should not take place until students ages, 12 to 17, are vaccinated. For students under 12, from primary and preschools, the BMDA is recommending that there be no face-to-face instruction until the third wave has passed.
We asked Dr. Cuellar about those Belizeans who won't willingly support these stricter measures:
Dr. Fernando Cuellar
"Come to the hospitals and the clinics and see what's going on and remember what happened in November and December. We definitely, do not want to get there where the hospitals became overwhelmed. People were waiting for beds, people waiting in the parking area, and that kind of thing. If we don't get this - and I'm not an alarmist, okay. I am a realist, and I think it is my duty to come out and say something. I hope I am wrong, but history has shown that this is, indeed, the reality."
