A comparison of the differences in public risk perception and public health policies between the first and the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic in Italy

Abstract

The paper presents the information on COVID-19 policy response in Italy inin the second half of 2020, when the second wave of the pandemic occurred. It builds on the authors previous report (1) that addressed the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Italy, from October till December, the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections increased significantly. However, the Italian government, unlike many other European governments, refrained from introducing a second nationwide lockdown. The pandemic was managed through a system of localized interventions (on a regional and / or provincial basis) which significantly varied across the regions. At the end of December 2020, a national plan for vaccination against COVID-19 was approved. In February 2021, together with the change of government, a new public policy against the COVID-19 pandemic was formulated.