On Saturday, 5,312 Israelis tested positive for the coronavirus out of 99,036 (5.36%) – compared with 7,761 new patients out of 144,885 (5.35%) who were tested on Friday. As of Sunday morning, there are 666 critical Corona patients in Israeli hospitals, out of whom 104 are on respirators. On Friday there were 645n critical patients, with 110 on respirators.
Seven Corona patients have died in Israel over the weekend.
The emerging view among medical experts in Israel is that the fourth wave of the virus, a.k.a. the Delta virus, has been slowing down, largely thanks to the enormous success of the third dose of the vaccine. So far, among Israelis aged 40 and older, 1,377,692 have already received the booster shot. 5,440,590 have received the second dose, and 5,889,994 the first.
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has announced that Arad and Rechasim are at the top of the list of red cities with a score of 10—the highest. The rate of positive tests in the Haredi localities continues to be significantly higher than the national average. The positive rate in Rechasim is 21%, in Elad 16%, in Modi’in Illit 14%, in Bnei Brak 13%, Kiryat Ye’arim 11%, and in Beitar Illit 10%.
In Tel Aviv and Jerusalem the positive rate is 5% in each city, in Petah Tikva 6%, in Haifa and in Ramat Gan 5%.
The Corona Cabinet convenes on Sunday, ahead of the start of the school year on September 1, for a crucial debate on the outline of the return. Most ministers and senior Ministry of Health officials believe there’s no need to postpone the opening, especially in light of the slowdown—albeit moderate—in the rate of morbidity.
But the number of schoolchildren who are infected or in isolation due to contact with a verified patient continues to rise. Health Ministry Data show that 26,443 students are verified Corona patients and 88,108 are in isolation. In other words, 114,551 students altogether are in isolation.
There’s a consensus in the Corona Cabinet on carrying out vaccinations in schools even during school hours, contrary to the position of Education Minister Yifat Shasha-Biton who agreed to vaccinations only before and after school hours. Shasha Biton, who is alone in her view, expects the cabinet meeting to give her a “ladder to get off her tree,” as the Israeli adage goes, and stop the drift of her popularity in the public opinion polls. She stressed that “I will be committed to, and carry it out in full any decision made in the Corona Cabinet.”
Not that they cared.