On Friday (21 January) the Belgian Consultation Committee (at last) approved the corona barometer and barometer-based measures will come into effect on Friday, 28 January under code red. In addition, the booster vaccine will be added to Covid Safe Tickets (CST) from 1 March.

The committee noted that the number of infections is continuing to increase sharply due to the omicron variant and the reproduction rate of infection remains above 1. The number of hospitalisations is also increasing, although the number of intensive care beds occupied by Covid patients is slightly decreasing, which reflects the characteristics of the omicron variant: less pathogenic but much more contagious.

Corona barometer

The long-awaited corona barometer is intended as a tool for proactive policy preparation and communication and should offer more predictability to business sectors and citizens, better structure the decisions of the Consultation Committee, and make them more transparent.

Codes yellow, orange and red

The corona barometer has three phases that reflect the level of pressure on the healthcare sector:

• Code Yellow: epidemiological situation and pressure on hospitals under control;
• Code Orange: increasing pressure on the health system, requiring intervention to reverse the trend;
• Code Red: high risk of overloading the health system.

To determine the applicable code, the Concertation Committee will take into account, in addition to the pressure exerted on healthcare, an overall assessment of the epidemiological situation and will pay particular attention to mental health.

The barometer focuses on public events, HORECA (Hotel/Restaurant/Café) and recreational activities. A distinction is made between indoor/outdoor and non-dynamic/dynamic activities. Other sectors may be added later as the situation evolves. Education and social contacts will not be part of the barometer.

Code red from 28 January 2022

Based on the accelerating increase in the number of hospitalisations, on the high positivity rate and on the intense circulation of omicron resulting in an increasing number of absences in schools, companies, care sectors and public services, the Consultation Committee has decided to launch the code red barometer from 28 January with the following measures.

Public events

Public events like plays and football matches will be allowed indoors and outdoors, with the exception of dynamic indoor events like dance parties.

Wearing a mask is compulsory for everyone inside and outside. The CST is mandatory at all events involving 50 or more participants indoors and 100 or more participants outdoors.

A capacity of up to 200 people is still allowed. An occupancy rate of 70 or even 100% is authorised for the largest venue rooms provided that the air quality is maintained below 900 ppm CO2.

Weddings and funerals are permitted as currently.

HORECA

The closing time for the HORECA sector is extended to midnight. Wearing a mask remains applicable for customers and staff and the CST is mandatory. In addition, the rules concerning the capacity of 6 people per table and the ban on eating while standing still apply. The nightclubs and discos (indoor/dynamic) remain closed.

Organised group activities

Organized group activities such as youth movements, associative life and the practice of sport at a non-professional level are authorised. The maximum capacity is 80 people inside and 200 people outside. Regarding camps, overnight stays are authorised.

Opening of a series of indoor activities

With the exception of nightclubs and dance halls, the following indoor spaces, currently closed, can reopen to the public: amusement parks, indoor playgrounds, animal parks and zoos, subtropical swimming pools and recreational parts of swimming pools, trampoline parks, bowling alleys and darts halls, snooker and billiard halls, paintball centres, laser games, escape rooms, casinos, automatic arcades and betting shops.

Telecommuting, shopping and wearing a mask

Current measures regarding teleworking (four days a week), safe shopping and wearing a mask remain in effect.

Validity of the vaccination certificate from 1 March

Getting a booster dose is an important protective measure against the virus. Consequently, the committee has decided to change the period of validity of the vaccination certificate in the Covid Safe Ticket from 270 days to 150 days from March 1. The validity of the booster dose is not limited in time.

This means that anyone who was vaccinated before 1 October 2021 with one dose (Janssen only) or two doses (Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca/Oxford) must receive a booster dose before 1 March or their vaccination certification will expire.

The validity of the certificate of reinstatement will also be extended to 150 days.

These changes only affect people over the age of 18.