Armenia says COVID-19 situation worsening
YEREVAN, January 19. /ARKA/. Armenia’ Deputy Health Minister Lena Nanushyan warned today of the worsening coronavirus situation in the country, saying that the number of new cases is increasing at a noticeable rate not only in Armenia, but also across the region and in European countries because of new variant omicron, which is more contagious.
According to Nanushyan, the Health Minister's order banning people from visiting public places (restaurants, cafes, museums, gyms, etc.) without a certificate of vaccination or a negative PCR test is very timely. The order comes into force on January 22, 2022.
According to her, the order will not only prompt more citizens to get vaccinated, but also create a safer environment in public venues.
In response to critics that the order will harm businesses, Nanushyan referred to global experience, saying in the past two years the pandemic has had an extremely negative impact on the economy of various states, including developed countries.
"We are trying to apply restrictions and regulations gradually so that, on the one hand, to protect the health of citizens and, on the other hand, not to harm economy," the Deputy Minister said.
She also stressed that vaccinated citizens are infected with coronavirus less often than the unvaccinated ones.
According to the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the total tally of deaths from Covid-19 is now 8,025. A total of 1,761,529 doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered in Armenia as of January 17, 2022. Some 973,944 people received the first dose of the vaccine and 784,849 people received both doses.
Also, 2,736 people have received also the third booster shot. Armenia’s population is about 3 million.
In Armenia, 5 types of Covid-19 vaccines are used now- CoronaVac and Sinopharm (China), AstraZeneca (Britain, Sweden), Sputnik V (Russia) and Spikevax (Moderna, USA). Vaccinations are free for people over 18 years old, including foreigners.
On November 11, the government of Armenia extended the coronavirus quarantine until June 20, 2022.
The nationwide quarantine was first imposed on September 11, 2020 replacing the state of emergency that was declared on March 16 to stop the spread of coronavirus. -0-
