ECDC - Risk assessments

This risk assessment details the latest epidemiological data in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) and the United Kingdom (UK) with a focus on older age groups and national reports of outbreaks among residents of LTCFs. All EU/EEA countries and the UK have experienced outbreaks among LTCF residents since August 2020.

This assessment considers the risk to human health posed by SARS-CoV-2 mink related variants. It is based on information available to ECDC at the time of publication and, unless otherwise stated, the assessment of risk refers to the risk that existed at the time of writing.

In this update, we assess the risk for the general population and vulnerable individuals in relation to the increase in COVID-19 notification rates in the EU/EEA and the UK.

Since 1 August 2019, a multi-country outbreak, caused by Salmonella Typhimurium ST19 and S. Anatum ST64, has affected three European Union (EU) countries, the United Kingdom and Canada.

In this update, we analyse the risk posed to the general population, vulnerable individuals, and healthcare provision by the current increase in COVID-19 case notification rates observed in the EU/EEA and the UK.

Cases with suspected or possible reinfection with SARS-CoV-2 have been recently reported in different countries. In many of these cases, it is uncertain if the individual’s Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test remained positive for a long period of time following the first episode of infection or whether it represents a true reinfection.

In this update, ECDC analyses the risk of further escalation of COVID-19 in the countries that have reported a recent increase in COVID-19 cases and the risk of further escalation of COVID-19 across all EU/EEA countries and the UK.