A detailed transition to adaptive quarantine was discussed at a traditional meeting chaired by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy on preventing the spread of COVID-19. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Cabinet of Ministers and law enforcement agencies.
In particular, it was said that six regions are not yet ready to mitigate security measures. These are the Chernivtsi, Rivne, Lviv, Kyiv regions, as well as Zakarapttia and Volyn. These regions do not meet the criteria of morbidity, hospital beds and the number of tests that would allow for adaptive quarantine at this stage.
In other regions, some mitigations are allowed, yet not required, as local authorities should consider the extent of implementation of these measures in the given situation. This includes the opening of kindergartens, the launch of public transport, the holding of sports events without spectators with the participation of no more than 50 people, religious events with the participation of no more than one person per 10 square meters of building area, the work of hotels excluding restaurants and spas. All this is possible subject to safety measures.
The President raised the issue of purchasing personal protective equipment and equipment to prevent the spread of coronavirus and save patients. Minister of Health Maksym Stepanov said that more than 100,000 respirators had been delivered to Ukraine with the help of a national company. He added that cooperation had been established with the World Bank to procure everything necessary. Also, contracts for future purchases would be signed next week.
"Hospitals, doctors, pharmacies - there should be masks, disinfectants, equipment everywhere. Procurement takes a long time. We need to find ways to shorten this process, so that in the future the ministry will buy faster. We know what a complicated bureaucracy we have. Find ways to simplify it. Every delay can cost us lives. The world is waiting for the second wave of coronavirus. We did relatively well during the first wave, although, unfortunately, we lost more than 600 lives. We must be ready with all the procedures in the future," Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.
The parties also raised the issue of allowing Ukrainian manufacturers of masks and other means of protection to export their products if it is impossible to sell them in Ukraine and they meet the requirements of other countries. The President supported this. The Cabinet of Ministers will work out the necessary decisions next week.