All countries and regions of the European Union and the European Economic Area (EEA) remain for another week in the "deep red" category, the highest on the transmissibility scale for the virus causing COVID-19, according to an epidemiological map of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published on Thursday.
The only exceptions to the map covering the past two weeks were Portugal, Denmark and Malta, which are not categorized due to insufficient data.
The map aims to inform local authorities and citizens about the epidemiological situation at the local level to facilitate decisions to impose restrictive measures and citizens' travel decisions.
The data presented in the map refers to the number of new cases of COVID-19 per 100 thousand people in the last 14 days in each region of the EU/EEA countries, weighted by the vaccination rate in each region.
The entire EU and EEA have been in the "deep red" category since 1 February, when the new methodology for measuring the epidemiological situation was implemented.
Note that this map does not record deaths or serious hospitalisations. It also does not record how many of the total cases are due to the Omicron variant.
The "green" category includes areas where the weighted incidence rate is below 40. When the index is below 100 but equal to or greater than 40, the affected areas fall into the "orange" category. When the index is below 300 but equal to or greater than 100, the areas fall into the 'red' category. When the index is equal to or above 300, they fall into the "deep red" category.
The map and related data are published by the ECDC every Thursday, supporting efforts made on the basis of an EU Council Recommendation on the coordination of restrictions on free movement due to the pandemic, which was revised on 25 January and implemented on 1 February.
The maps are based on the latest data in the database sent by Member States to the European Surveillance System (TESSy) by midnight on Tuesday.
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