Coronavirus situation in Armenia stabilizes
YEREVAN, January 12. /ARKA/. The number of new cases of coronavirus has been decreasing since late last year and now the situation has stabilized, Gayane Sahakyan, deputy director of the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention, who is also head of the National Immunization Program, told a news conference today.
Sahakyan said that the number of new cases, nonetheless is expected to rise because the people actively communicated during New Year and Christmas holidays despite the restrictions.
"As of January 12, we have recorded 162,643 confirmed cases of infection, the mortality rate is 1.8%.. Most cases are people aged 55-60 and 30-35,' she said.
According to her, there is no shortage of test kits for COVID-19, but the number of people applying to laboratories for testing has decreased. "The proportion of positive tests has also decreased to 16-16.5%," she said.
Speaking about vaccinations, Sahakyan said that Armenia has an agreement with the COVAX Facility initiative for delivery of vaccins for 10% of the country's residents, who are in the risk groups.
"By the end of January - the first half of February, we will already have vaccines and vaccination will begin," she added.
According to her, intensive negotiations are underway with four manufacturers - Russian Sputnik V, German Pfizer & BioNTech, American Moderna and British AstraZeneca.
"For us, the main and most important factor is safety and efficacy," Sahakyan emphasized. -0-
