Russian regions should increase the pace of vaccination against coronavirus before the New Year holidays, said Deputy Prime Minister and head of the operational headquarters for combating COVID Tatyana Golikova.
“What is especially important, holidays should not lead to a new round of morbidity in Of Russia: it is mandatory to comply with restrictive measures and conduct COVID-free events,” she said.
According to Golikova, the situation with coronavirus worsened in ten regions during the week: Ivanovo, Nizhny Novgorod, Orenburg, Ryazan, Tambov and Chelyabinsk regions, Altai, Bashkiria, Dagestan, and Chuvashia. In three subjects — Belgorod and Kaliningrad regions and Karachay-Cherkessia — improvement is observed.
According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the only region that has achieved collective immunity remains Sevastopol, where this figure is 88.7%. Collective immunity is the formation of a stratum of the population with immunity to the disease, sufficient for the further spread of infection to stop. According to the operational headquarters, as of December 17, its level exceeded 58% across the country.
Due to the spread of a new omicron strain of coronavirus, the head of Rospotrebnadzor Anna Popova advised Russians to spend New Year’s holidays at home. She noted that tourists are at risk of contracting a new variant of SARS-CoV-2, as well as staying in the country of rest indefinitely due to possible border closures.
In mid-December, Golikova instructed the regional authorities to strengthen control over compliance with anti-coronavirus restrictions before the holidays, as well as to monitor the preparation of work schedules for hospitals and medical personnel and the provision of necessary supplies of medicines. In Crimea, concerts and entertainment events in places of mass stay of people were banned on public holidays.