what measures is the government analyzing following the suggestion of experts

“Nothing is excluded, but nothing is imminent.” The clarification provided by an important official with an office at Casa Rosada sums up the crossroads of the government in the face of the impact of the second wave of coronavirus, social wear and tear and the recommendation of the experts to the Chief of Staff, Santiago Cafiero, to apply tougher measures, even total closures, similar to those of last year, in order to contain the contagion curve.

Although, as Clarín said, already at the previous meeting, the administration Alberto Fernández had spoken of granting a “minimum” period of 72 hours to assess the measures that began to take effect last Friday, the suggestion specialists and the almost unanimous consideration of the risk of collapse of the health system reopened the internal ruling party debate on the need for more restrictions.

With little social and economic leeway to impose a return to phase 1 or an indefinite shutdown without extreme context, the government admits that the experts’ proposal was not rejected. Find out more: official sources indicate that the strategy of possibly taxing is consolidated “strong intermittent restrictions“It is with a clear and concrete announcement that traffic is restricted and with it many non-essential activities, including economic, for a while, without extensions, as has already been implemented in several countries around the world.

A Creole reversal of the theory of the hammer and the dance of the Franco-Spanish engineer Tomás Pueyo, who last year asked for constant closings and openings to live together until the appearance of vaccines. In this case, intermittent closures, whenever an extreme health situation is faced, would stop the curve and save time for the vaccination plan to move forward.

Spain, Great Britain and Italy are some of the examples of Casa Rosada where strong measures have been imposed with relative success in terms of compliance.

Among Fernández’s collaborators, however, they point out that the big question is when to go ahead with more restrictions.

“Social attrition influences, in fact, otherwise, if it were epidemiological, measures should have been taken before; but if you tell people when it starts and you guarantee what day it ends, and actually ends, it’ll fill it. fear of the disease is also starting to return, ”said one of those present at the meeting with the experts.

Based on this “self-control” which they say started to be seen last week, the government decided to wait a bit longer. “If people respect these measures, maybe the red button should not be activated,” notes a presidential adviser.

Thus, unless “a catastrophe occurs which today cannot be seen in figures”, it opens a wait until next week. The 27,001 new cases recorded on Tuesday, although they set a new record, are within the figures expected by the government.

The search for a consensus between the three jurisdictions – Nation, Province and City – also explains the caution. “Nothing can be done without coordination,” they conceded to the ruling party.

It is precisely because of this problem that the Province has still not moved forward with tougher measures, which the Chief of Staff of Buenos Aires, Carlos Bianco, cleared on Tuesday, admitting that the proposal to ‘Axel Kicillof last week’ was to vigorously close 15 days to reduce the increase in cases. “

This is what some epidemiologists have also asked, who understand that this is the only way to give a coup to stop the level of infections.

In government, they share the concern about the contagion curve so high. “The bet is that it does not continue with peaks and that it becomes a plateau,” they argue. But it was decided to wait. “There is nothing imminent,” they insist.

Additionally, at Casa Rosada, they point out that the big differences and different health scenarios across Argentina require local recipes. “Catamarca cannot be closed here because of what is happening in the AMBA, but much of what is happening in the AMBA, will later have an impact on Catamarca”, they reason, justifying the importance that the government attaches to the metropolitan area of ​​Buenos Aires, but at the same time, the decision to deepen the restrictions and “surgical” closures.

“We cannot speak of more than a total closure at the national level and not even at the provincial level: each zone is a distinct case which must be evaluated in a global way”, they underline. In this sense, they model the phase system implemented by Kicillof.

The man of Buenos Aires weighs on the other governors because “he does not hesitate to take decisions even if they have a political cost”. Jorge Capitanich from Chaco is another who makes up this list. The distinction has to do with the greater proactivity that Casa Rosada demanded from the leaders.

Among the measures that depend exclusively on the Nation, an adjustment is analyzed to reduce traffic in public transport in the AMBA, reducing the categories of essential goods that can use it. Unlike last year, when there were no classes in schools, did the flow of teachers and students on buses and trains mean a 20% increase in the number of passengers? .

The removal of windows in the units, announced by the Minister of Transport, Mario Meoni, is not enough for the health authorities, who watch “with great concern” the viral images daily on congested passengers in trains and buses.