Italy’s reopening advances in test for Europe’s virus exit

Bloomberg

Italy is advancing plans to gradually lift restrictions to contain the coronavirus as Europe’s exit from stringent lockdown measures takes shape.
Amid tense discussions weighing political and economic pressures against public-health concerns, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s government is hammering out an approach that foresees the full return to normal life taking months, according to people directly involved in the talks.
In the original epicenter of the outbreak on the continent, schools will likely remain closed until September, with every step to ease restrictions dependent on the spread of the deadly disease remaining under control, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are confidential.
Some companies and shops may resume operations as soon as April 13, and Italians could be allowed to go outside and gradually return to offices as of May 4, the people said.
As the first European country to impose a nationwide lockdown, Italy’s move to ease its restrictions would mark an important step in the region’s battle with the pandemic that started in China and spread across the world.
The continent has been hit hard. Italy, Spain, Germany and France trail only the US in the number of infections, and the region has suffered more than 65% of worldwide deaths.
After Norway became the latest European country to pursue a controlled reopening of the economy, Germany is also weighing initial steps to ease restrictions designed to limit contact between people.
Small stores could be allowed to open beginning on April 20, according to the state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has one of the country’s largest outbreaks.
Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has urged caution to prevent a rekindling of the epidemic, will meet with leaders of Germany’s 16 states next week to discuss containment measures. The restrictions in Europe’s largest economy, including a ban on gatherings of more than two people, are currently in force until April 19.
In Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will ask parliament on Thursday for approval to extend a state of emergency through April 25. The country will return to normal life gradually after April 26, although experts are still working on how that process will work, Maria Jesus Montero, budget minister and government spokeswoman, told broadcaster Antena 3.
New cases and deaths rose by the most in four days in Europe’s most-extensive outbreak of the disease, a grim reminder of the difficulties in controlling the spread.

Life Changing
Emerging from the lockdown would mark a sea-change in Italian life, with officials considering requiring protective masks inside shops and offices, allowing only a few individuals in stores and mandating people maintain a distance of at least one metre, according to the officials.
Also under consideration are measures to protect people most at risk, including older
individuals and those with previous illnesses, possibly by slowing their return to work. Italy’s Health Ministry is also pushing for more hospitals dedicated to the virus.
For the prime minister, a former academic, it was an opportunity to ensure his government based its strategy on science as the spread slows and the lockdown cripples the economy. Conte’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.