A week before the school year opens, Israel has begun a large-scale antibody survey in children three to 12 years old in an attempt to measure how many have been infected with the coronavirus in the past year and a half.
The survey, a joint project of IDF Home Front Command and the Health and Education ministries, will take place in 300 serological testing complexes run by Magen David Adom.
The tests will be done with a finger prick similar to a diabetes test and will give healthcare providers a quick answer.
The IDF intends to screen close to two million youths under the age of 12 to see if they have had the coronavirus.
With children currently ineligible for vaccines, those who test positive will receive a Green Pass and be exempt from isolation if someone in their class tests positive for COVID-19 during the school year.
The Health Ministry reported 5,312 new coronavirus cases on Saturday. At last count, there were 666 patients in serious condition, and 104 were intubated.
Due to the soaring numbers at the beginning of the current coronavirus wave, Home Front Command reopened its Epidemiological Investigations Task Force (Alon) headquarters and is carrying out some 150,000 tests on a daily basis and in-depth epidemiological investigations.
Alon is also checking all travelers who have returned from abroad for 10 days to determine whether new variants appear in those who test positive for the virus. It then carries out genetic sequencing on their PCR tests in an effort to identify any variant that might cause an outbreak.
The IDF said it was optimistic the current wave will taper off in the coming weeks as the number of new coronavirus cases drop, especially among people 60 and older. It attributed the slowing down of the infection rate to people wearing masks and an increase in the number of vaccinated and recovered individuals.
The Delta variant triggered soaring infection rates, but according to a study conducted by Maccabi Healthcare Services, the third shot of the coronavirus vaccine is 86% effective in preventing infection among those 60 and older.
People who have received two doses of the vaccine were significantly less likely to get seriously ill, the Health Ministry reported.
Since Israel began giving the third vaccine shot two weeks ago, more than 1.2 million people have received it. Some 5.8 million Israelis have received the first dose, and 5.4 have received the second.