Athletes without vaccine will sign a risk term to play Paulista

The medical committee of the FPF (São Paulo Football Federation) informed this Friday (21) to the 16 clubs that start the Paulista Championship dispute that players without a complete vaccination schedule against the coronavirus will need to sign a risk term to play the competition.

The decision comes after a survey of cases of Covid-19 in athletes who are not yet immunized. The names and teams were not revealed.

“We did a mapping. The number of unvaccinated athletes is low, but there are some cases, yes. As it is not a determination of the country, there is no mandatory vaccine, we cannot go against it. The athlete or coach who does not want to vaccinate will need to assume their responsibility for that. We will value the vaccine a lot, they will have to sign a risk term”, he told leaf the federation’s doctor, Moisés Cohen.

The term is mandatory for non-vaccinated among players, members of technical committees, delegates and match referees.

According to the entity, “missing cases” will be analyzed individually by the medical committee. “Our intention is not to prevent or harm anyone from exercising their profession. We go to our limit.”

The five-page document sent to clubs also includes the need to present negative antigen PCR tests carried out with a maximum advance of 24 hours in relation to the games. The initial intention was that testing would only be required for the unvaccinated, but even the vaccinated will need to be tested.

“The protocol adjustment is due to the suitability for the moment we are living. There is a variant with much greater transmissibility, although with low aggressiveness. We only think about protecting the athletes”, explained Cohen.

Only those who contracted Covid-19 from January 1 will not need to undergo exams. They will be exempt for the next four months unless they have symptoms or are medically justified.

The period of leave imposed by the entity will be ten days from the positive test. There is a possibility of returning from the eighth day if the athlete is without symptoms and presents a negative test. The return, in this case, is the responsibility of the club doctors.

The changes aim to meet the state government’s requirement to contain the accelerated advance of transmission of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. On the 12th, based on a suggestion from the Contingency Center, the São Paulo administration determined that the competition should have a public limited to 70% in the stadiums and require proof of vaccination from fans.

“All events should require proof of vaccine, if possible PCR testing. […] Depending on the epidemiological situation of the municipality, this percentage [de restrição] can be changed to more”, said the executive coordinator of the state scientific committee, João Gabbardo.

There are still no indications on the part of the FPF about new restrictive measures. “It’s too early to talk about it, we’ve been going step by step with health. This is based a lot on data. Everything has to be scientifically grounded,” said Cohen.

In the protocol delivered to the clubs, the federation asks that everyone be immunized and notes: “On average, eight out of ten patients hospitalized in infirmary and ICU beds for Covid-19 at the Instituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas, a reference in treatment in São Paulo, have not been vaccinated against the disease or have not completed the immunization”.

All four of the state’s big ones came forward with cases on their rosters. The biggest outbreak occurred in São Paulo, with 14 cases. Santos and Palmeiras recorded similar numbers. Corinthians suffered fewer casualties, with three cases.

The start of the State Championship is scheduled for Sunday (23), with the match between Novorizontino and Palmeiras, at the Jorge Ismael de Biasi stadium, in Novo Horizonte.