Coronavirus: Measures could be eased if drop in infections continues, minister says

If the downward trend in daily cases continues, it will be possible to gradually start easing the measures against the spread of coronavirus, Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou said on Thursday.

The minister said, after a briefing by the advisory committee on coronavirus, that the epidemiological indicators “are moving away from unsafe limits but remain high.”

“The decline of the positivity rate in combination with the reduction of the cases point to a curb to the out-of-control spread of the virus, which is the objective of the restrictive measures,” Ioannou said. However, he warned, the health system is still under great pressure while the situation in the intensive care units, although under control, remains particularly difficult.

Authorities had said that decisions on the restrictive measures also depended on the number of patients with coronavirus in hospitals and especially intensive care units (ICUs).

Though numbers have gradually dropped to under 200 in the past few days, there have been 19 deaths during the past week.

The numbers of patients in hospitals have been around 200 during the past weeks, which is considered high.

By Wednesday evening, 192 people were in hospital, 60 of them in serious condition. Thirty-seven people were in the ICU with 29 of them intubated.

“If the downward trend of the epidemiological indicators continues, we can expect a gradual de-escalation of the restrictive measures, which expire on January 31,” the minister said.

To this end, he said, a technical committee composed of officials from the ministries of health, finance, labour, education and trade and industry will work on the recommendations of the advisory committee on the de-escalation strategy, so that reactivation can take place smoothly and effectively with the least possible problems.

At the moment only two outings per day are allowed with permission through SMS to 8998, while most shops are closed until the end of the month.

The experts will also make suggestions for better implementation of de-escalation measures and the effective monitoring of health protocols in the professional and other sectors, which will be reactivated, he added.

At the same time testing among the general population continues and will be intensified targeting employees who will return to their workplaces in each phase of de-escalation to be decided by the cabinet.

“As always, the criterion for our decisions is to maintain the epidemiological situation at levels that do not endanger public health and do not wipe out everything we have achieved so far,” he said.

Ioannou stressed that this health crisis will last for an unspecified period and therefore, “during the coming months, until there is a vaccination shield of the population, the maximum possible preparedness and vigilance is required to avoid a setback.”

The minister said that many other European countries are on high alert for fear of a third, perhaps worse, pandemic. “Cyprus remains in the red zone, but the partial improvement of the epidemiological picture reflects the effectiveness of the measures implemented at the end of December and rewards the sacrifices of each person individually and of our society as a whole.”