The latest COVID-19 map issued by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows increased cases across Europe, consisting mostly of red or deep red zones.
Cyprus remains in the red category of ‘moderate concern’ for another week.
The ECDC map records the number of new cases per 100,000 over the past 14 days, with its level of concern very high at 8.3/10.
The overall COVID-19 case notification rate for the EU/EEA was 612.2 per 100 000 population (485.5 the previous week).
This rate has been increasing for seven weeks.
At the end of week 46 (ending 21 November), the overall epidemiological situation in the EU/EEA was characterised by a high and rapidly increasing overall case notification rate and a low but slowly increasing death rate.
Case notification rates, death rates, and hospital and ICU admissions are forecast to increase over the next two weeks.
After the rapid rise in cases over the past few weeks, only some areas in France, Spain and Sweden, and Malta and most of Italy remain in the orange zone.
Croatia, Czechia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia are categorised as “very high concern”.
And 14 countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, and Slovenia are of “high concern.”
Eight countries, Cyprus, Estonia, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Romania, Spain and Sweden, are of “moderate concern”.
Compared with the previous week, France moved to a higher category.
Only two regions in Poland remain in the red category, with the situation worsening in the rest of the country.
Southern and eastern Germany remains in deep red, while its north-western areas are in the red category.
Orange zone areas are where the 14-day cumulative COVID-19 case notification rate is below 50.
The test positivity rate for COVID-19 infection is 4% or more, or the 14-day notification rate is between 50 and 75.
The test positivity rate is 1% or more, the 14-day case rate is between 75 and 200, and the test positivity rate is lower than 4%.
Red zone areas are where the 14-day cumulative COVID-19 case notification rate ranges from 75 to 200, the test positivity rate for COVID-19 infection is 4% or more, or the 14-day case rate is over 200 but less than 500 (when the cumulative rate exceeds 500 the area enters the “deep red” zone).
ECDC issues maps and data every Thursday to support a coordinated EU approach to the restriction on free movement during the pandemic.
