ArmInfo.Currently, only 3% of citizens with a positive test result for COVID-19 are vaccinated, Armenian Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan said at a government meeting on October 28. As Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan pointed out, the Republic of Armenia should not follow the path of introducing a lockdown.
The Minister said that 2307 new cases of coronavirus infection were registered in Armenia over the past 24 hours. In total, 302,450 patients with COVID-19 were registered, the daily increase was 2307; 6189 patients died (38 people per day).
At the moment, according to the minister, 27 medical centers serve patients with coronavirus infection, 3050 beds are almost constantly occupied. "1088 people are in serious condition, 307 patients are in critical condition, 150 people are on mechanical ventilation," she said.
At the same time, according to the head of the Ministry of Health, out of 30 433 active cases of the disease, only 1702 citizens were vaccinated. "Among 3100 citizens who are in hospitals today, only 96 people are vaccinated. And among those who are in intensive care units (1500 people on mechanical ventilation), only 5 or 0.5% are vaccinated," she said.
The Prime Minister, in turn, stated that the strategy of the RA government is not to follow the path of introducing a new lockdown, but will work towards toughening the rules for wearing masks. As Pashinyan pointed out, the issue of compulsory wearing of masks in open areas is being discussed.
Earlier, the Ministry of Health said that they are discussing the transition to paid treatment for COVID-19 patients who have not been vaccinated. A package of amendments is also being developed, which provides for the presentation of a negative result of a PCR test for coronavirus or a certificate of vaccination when visiting restaurants, concert halls, etc. The country's authorities are considering reducing the frequency of taking a PCR test for coronavirus for those who do not want or cannot get vaccinated from 14 to 10 or 7 days.
To recall, for six months - from March 16 to September 11, 2020 inclusive, a state of emergency was introdused in Armenia due to the coronavirus pandemic. After the parliament introduced amendments to the package of relevant laws, the Armenian government introduced quarantine throughout the country, which was extended twice and is currently valid until December 20, 2021.