Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv announced Monday that it has closed its last active ward treating Coronavirus patients, following the current decline of the pandemic in Israel.
The last 18 Corona patients hospitalized in Ichilov, the main hospital complex serving Tel Aviv and its metropolitan area, were moved to a designated compound.
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A coronavirus intensive care unit at the Ichilov Hospital in October, 2020
(Photo: TPS)
In another ease of the COVID-19 related restrictions in Israel, the Cabinet approved on Sunday night field trips for youth movements in open areas and overnight field trips for grades 11 and 12 and post-secondary boarding schools in which at least 90% of pupils have been vaccinated.
The Cabinet also approved opening Israel’s skies to flights from any destination.
The operator of the airport will be restricted in the allocation of slots for arriving flights in accordance with the daily quota of 3,000 entries in total, the social distancing rules and the carrying out of tests at the airport.
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Israelis returning to Israel at Ben Gurion International Airport on Monday
(Photo: Shaul Golan)
The improvement in Israel’s situation vis-à-vis the coronavirus is attributed to its success to rapidly vaccinate its population.
When asked about returning to a completely normal routine, Israel’s Corona czar Prof. Nachman Ash told Ynet News that “the closest thing to that will happen when we can achieve herd immunity, at least seven million vaccinated. That means children will also need to be vaccinated. I hope that will happen in the summer. We are waiting for the results of Pfizer’s research on the subject.”
The Ministry of Health updated Monday that it documented 1,339 new COVID-19 cases over the past day.
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A young man is administered his coronavirus vaccine in Beit Shemesh last month
(Photo: AFP)
Of the 56,929 tests done over the past day, 2.4% returned positive.
627 of the patients hospitalized with Corona are in serious condition, 212 of them are on life support. The numbers here have been steadily dropping.
Over 5,165,000 Israelis have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, some 55.55% of the population, and over 4.2 million Israelis – about 45% – have received the second dose.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu estimated this week that by the end of April the entire adult population in Israel will be vaccinated.
However, Israel marked a grim milestone on Monday when it counted 6,025 who Israelis have died of the virus.