Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov has said the lockdown scheduled from January 8 to 24 is necessary to bring down the wave of the COVID-19 spread.
"We proceeded from the fact that quarantine curbs would operate for 16 days – this is the period that we need to completely bring down the wave of the COVID-19 spread, this is the measure that is necessary for our country in terms of anti-epidemic steps," he said at a daily online briefing, an UNIAN correspondent reports.
According to the minister, the tightening of quarantine is necessary so that no lockdowns are introduced afterward.
Read alsoLockdown in Ukraine on Jan 8-24: Regulations"So that we calmly pass the peak ascertainment rate of influenza, so that no lockdowns are introduced until spring – until April, May, so that we can calmly pass this wave of the COVID-19 spread, so that our healthcare system can prevail, so that we are able to provide medical care regardless of where a Ukrainian citizen lives," Stepanov said.
The Ukrainian government at an extraordinary meeting on December 9 adopted a decision to put Ukraine on lockdown for the period from January 8 to January 24, 2021.
Restrictions will be imposed on arts and showbusiness events (concerts, performances, exhibitions, as well as on cinemas); entertainment establishments (discos and nightclubs, including a ban on the rent of premises for any corporate events); educational institutions (schools and universities), except for kindergartens; accommodation facilities, except for hotels and rehabilitation centers.
The ban is also imposed on the work of gyms, fitness centers, swimming pools (except in outdoor settings and for professional teams), while holding professional sports events is allowed with empty stands.
Catering establishments will be allowed to pursue with takeaway or delivery only, while beauty salons will be obliged to receive clients by appointment without making them wait in lines indoors.
State and municipal institutions will switch to work from home.
Christmas fairs will be prohibited after January 8.
