The government will continue the quarantine until April: some of the restrictions will be changed

Changes

At the government meeting, Health Minister Arūnas Dulkys explained the reasons why it is necessary to continue the quarantine throughout the country for another month.

“It is still necessary to further limit the spread of the infection, so (…) we propose to extend the quarantine regime for one more month, until March 31, 24 hours. The introduction of strict quarantine conditions in the The country has reduced the incidence, but the number of cases registered per week is high. (…) It has been observed that the number of cases has not decreased in the last week. (…) It could also be mentioned that the number of people hospitalized also it has increased this week, ”the Minister mentioned the reason for the extension of the quarantine at the Government meeting.

He said movement restrictions in the ring municipalities would be relaxed.

Evaluating the whole and our discussions, our measures and everything that we have discussed, this resolution proposes that the movement of people between municipalities extends until March 15, at 24 hours. Movement in circular municipalities would be allowed when moving between adjacent municipalities, ”said A. Dulkys.

I expected to make different decisions

Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė told the cabinet that she expected to make different decisions today.

“Probably most of us this week were waiting for opportunities to make different decisions, me too. It is a shame that we cannot go ahead according to our plan, because we do not have the circumstances to do so, ”said the Prime Minister.

“To what extent can these restrictions apply? We really understand that people are tired, compliance, motivation has decreased significantly. But one of the most important aspects is that we have already started vaccinating our elders. (…) We can assume that in March we will turn the first circle around those people aged 70 and over ”, the Prime Minister expected.

She said the best thing for everyone would be to “cover up” this section of society as quickly as possible: they are at the greatest risk.

“We need patience for this month, during which we should try to vaccinate as many older people as possible,” said I. Šimonytė.

He noted that the country’s municipalities have not yet increased the scope of the tests.

“We have talked with the Ministry of Health, I hope that perhaps today the Minister can sign legal acts that expand the scope of tests for certain groups, they are available in all municipalities. We will invite them to test in groups as we test the doctors, “said the Prime Minister.

“Perhaps from the middle of March we could move to a situation like this, when the municipalities would be demarcated, where the situation is worse than in others,” said I. Šimonytė.

Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė stated that the ring municipalities’ restrictions pose many challenges.

“We believe that this statement will not aggravate the epidemiological situation. We hope that people will be responsible. We hope that this does not create a pretext to travel, visit and mix homes,” said A. Bilotaitė.

Quarantine: until the end of March

It is explained that the quarantine continues due to the bad epidemiological situation.

“Given the unfavorable epidemiological situation of the coronavirus in Lithuania and in the world, there is still a need to further limit the spread of the COVID-19 disease. Therefore, in accordance with paragraph 3 of article 21 of the Prevention Law and Control of Communicable Diseases of the Republic of Lithuania, it is proposed to extend the duration of the quarantine regime throughout the territory of the Republic of Lithuania for one more month. – until 2021. March 31, at 24:00 “, says The document.

Movement restrictions are also being extended

If the government approves, the movement restrictions will continue.

“Given the proposed extension of the quarantine regime, it is also proposed to extend it until 2021. March 15, at midnight, to expand and restrict the movement of people between municipalities.

Be for It is proposed to allow the movement of people between “circular” municipalities – when people living in the adjacent municipalities of the city and district of Alytus, city and district of Kaunas, city and district of Klaipėda, city and district of Panevėžys, city and district of Šiauliai , the city and the district of Vilnius, move between the indicated adjacent municipalities ”, the document presented by the SAM states.

Proposals to wear masks

The Council of Independent Experts, advising the government, on Tuesday presented its proposal to the cabinet to relax the requirements for wearing masks outdoors.

According to experts, the masks should be used in open spaces only when there are other people at a distance of two meters. The requirement to wear masks indoors would not change.

The document presented by SAM endorsed these proposals.

It is worth mentioning that after receiving the report of the Council of Independent Experts in 2021. February 22, recommendations of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organization, and taking into account the practice of other countries, proposes to abolish the mandatory use of mouth guards (masks) in open spaces where there are no people other than family members. within 2 meters (the (adopted) children of the spouse or person with whom the registered partnership agreement has been entered into, including minor children, parents (adoptive parents), guardians of the person and his or her spouse or person with whom the registered partnership contract has been concluded) ”, indicates the quarantine change document.

It has also been proposed to force the population to wear only medical masks or respirators, since the effectiveness of cloth masks, shields and other similar measures to stop the spread of the virus is very low.

But this proposal is not yet reflected in the quarantine change document.

Protection of the nose and mouth is currently mandatory in all public places for people over six years of age. These can be masks, respirators or others. Exceptions apply to the disabled, athletes, or outside residential areas.