PARIS – France has recorded more than 100,000 viral infections in a single day for the first time since the start of the pandemic, and hospitalizations linked to COVID-19 have doubled in the past month, as the rapidly spreading variant of the omicron complicates government efforts to avoid further lockdown.

More than 1 in 100 people in the Paris region tested positive last week, according to the regional health service. Most of the new infections are linked to the omicron variant, which government experts say will be dominant in France in the coming days.

Meanwhile, an increase in delta-variant infections in recent months is pushing up hospital admissions. More than 1,000 people in France with the virus have died in the past week, bringing the total death toll to more than 122,000.

The government is holding emergency meetings on Monday to discuss next steps. Some scientists and educators have urged delaying going back to school after the holidays or reimposing a curfew.

But the education minister said schools are expected to reopen as usual on January 3, and other government officials are working to avoid measures that would hamper economic recovery.

Instead, the government is hoping that the boosted vaccinations will be enough. The government is pushing a bill that would require vaccinations to enter all restaurants and many public places, instead of the current health card system that allows people to produce a negative test or proof of recovery if they don’t. are not vaccinated.