Interior Minister Aryeh Deri acknowledged the government didn’t take sufficient measures to prevent a resurgence of the coronavirus during a meeting of ministers today, set to discuss imposing further restrictions, Channel 12 news reports.
“When we were still at 100 [new] sick people a day we needed to prepare,” Deri, who heads the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, is quoted saying by the network. “With testing, quarantines and cutting the infection rate.”
He also warned the health system could be overwhelmed in the winter, when Israel could face an outbreak of the flu and coronavirus simultaneously, if preparations aren’t made.
The report also says that during the meeting, Health Ministry officials warned that Israel could see 20 coronavirus deaths a day next month if the rate of new infections isn’t curbed.
The ministry has previously taken flak for what we’re seen as highly over-pessimistic forecasts, including predicting last month that as many as 5,000 people could require ventilators during a second wave.
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