Situation in the country is favourable, but in Lisbon it is worrying

The President of the Republic on 28 May considered that "the photograph" of the evolution of the covid-19 pandemic in the country "is favourable", but admitted concern about the situation in the Lisbon region, where the number of infected has grown.

The "picture" of the country's situation "is favourable", "there is no situation of lack of control" in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo, but of "attention and concern", said Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, at the end of yet another meeting, the seventh since the outbreak began in March, with experts on the "epidemiological situation of covid-19 in Portugal", at Infarmed, in Lisbon.

For Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, in the meeting “it was recognised that there is a special attention and concern regarding the Lisbon and Vale do Tejo region”, where the transmissibility risk indicator - the R - “is slightly higher”, 1.01, above the national average, below 1.

The R is the average number of infections caused by each infected person.

For Marcelo, “the existence of outbreaks is clear, but they are deserving of attention and concern” by the authorities.

“It is recognised that there is special attention and concern when it comes to the region of Lisbon and the Tagus Valley, not only because of the R, but because there is a clear existence in terms of the number of infected people, outbreaks, part of them already detected and with monitoring of transmission chains”, he added, and what “deserves such attention and concern”.

In addition to the reasons for concern in Lisbon, which he referred to at least three times, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa highlighted “positive aspects”, with the R below 1 in the two autonomous regions, Alentejo, Algarve, Norte and Centro.

Another “positive aspect” was the evolution in the number of hospitalised patients, namely in intensive care, which “continues with a decreasing trend” and with “less pressure” on these structures.

The President of the Republic also affirmed that,"in global terms", the first phase of the deflation "did not disturb the R and in most of the country the result is of favourable evolution".

A new meeting with specialists is scheduled for 8 June, in order to "be able to look at the distance" the "effects of the second phase of deflation, from 18 [May day] onwards" and before the third phase, which begins in 1 June "and whose effects are not yet visible on the 8th", explained the President.

This is the seventh meeting of this kind at Infarmed, with experts, President, Government, party leaders and social partners, and at which the data relating to the first two phases of deflation were presented and analyzed, the day before the Council of Ministers met to decide on the third phase of reopening, scheduled for 1 June.