Filenews 17 November 2021 - byMarilena Panagi
Even 24 hours after the meeting between the Minister of Health and scientists, the facts changed. And while in the previous days, the Government did not even mention the possibility of tightening measures and restrictions or taking additional measures, since yesterday morning the Minister of Health, Michalis Hadjipantelas, in his statements, left open the possibility, due to the outbreak of cases and increase in number hospitalized that has been observed in the last twenty-four hours. In fact, the Minister of Health referred to his next meeting with the members of the Advisory Scientific Committee, saying that if by Monday there is a further deterioration of the situation, it is not excluded that the meeting of the Council of Ministers on November 24 will take relevant decisions.
However, on the part of some scientists, who have long been demanding publicly the revision of the measures that are now in force, warning of the continuation, but also by other members of the TEU during Monday's meeting at the Ministry of Health, specific proposals were put forward which aim at the best possible monitoring of the situation, in order to avoid the need for strict restrictions, especially during the festive season.
Specifically, and as reported by information provided by "F", by three members of the TEU, a proposal was made for the preparation of a plan in which the proposed measures will be defined on the basis of specific epidemiological indicators and safety limits in order of priority and with the aim of keeping the economy and society as active as possible. That is, to prepare an action plan in which measures and restrictions will be prioritised and will take a turn for implementation depending on specific epidemiological indicators and safety limits which will also be determined.
The second recommendation that had long been put before the minister before the minister by one of the members of the TEU and was adopted by other scientists, concerns the application of SelfTest in Cyprus as well, but not according to the standards of its use in Greece, where the declaration of the positive result is mandatory through electronic registration.
According to the proposal of Cypriot scientists, citizens will be able to obtain individual tests for the rapid detection of antigen from their neighbourhood pharmacy and in case their result is positive, they will have the right to verification/review, free of charge through the programs of the Ministry of Health, whether they are vaccinated or unvaccinated people. That is, these tests will be used for self-testing purposes and not for incident registration purposes. This proposal is already being studied very seriously by the Ministry of Health.
In addition, scientists suggested the designation of sites according to their level of risk for increasing the spread of the virus, but also increasing the number of tests performed in education, since as found by the Tracing Unit, the increased number of examinations in Secondary Education has helped to a huge extent in the smooth operation of schools.
Finally, a proposal was made for the creation of a team that will deal with the preparation of therapeutic protocols that will be used in the care of patients with coronavirus, given the approval of pharmaceutical preparations for the covid-19 disease by the European Medicines Agency.
On the part of scientists, no suggestions were made for measures to be taken to separate citizens into vaccinated and unvaccinated, but only the need to strengthen vaccination in the younger groups of the population, where vaccination coverage rates remain very low, were stressed.
Of course, depending on the epidemiological data, next week during their new meeting with the Minister of Health, it is possible that the members of the scientific committee will submit suggestions for stricter measures and restrictions, since it is now probably a given that Cyprus, like the whole of Europe, is experiencing a new outbreak of the pandemic.
ON THE TABLE
> Preparation of a plan with the definition of measures depending on indicators and safety limits
> Self-Test by all, but not according to Greece's standards
> Designation of sites according to the level of risk for spreading the dispersion
> Increase in the number of tests performed in school units, regardless of the level of education
> Creation of a team that will deal with the preparation of therapeutic protocols
From the age of 40 the beginning is made to extend the third dose
The 39-40 age group of years completes six months from the initial vaccination.
From today, citizens 40 years of age and older will be able to arrange their appointment to receive the third / booster dose of the coronavirus vaccine through the Vaccination Portal, while from Monday, they will have the right and if they have completed six months from the day of receipt of the second dose of the vaccine to be served by the free attendance centres operating in all provinces. According to official data from the Ministry of Health, the age group of 39-40 years begins to complete six months from the second dose at the earliest on November 22. It is recalled that the vaccination portal for the first dose had been opened for the 39 -40 years old on April 29, 2021. That is why, in its announcement yesterday, the Ministry of Health stressed the need for six months from the completion of the vaccination regimen, i.e. the receipt of the second dose.
The gradual implementation of the decision of the Council of Ministers the day before yesterday to extend the booster vaccination to all adults was decided during a meeting held yesterday at the Ministry of Health and aims at the smooth service of citizens without creating long queues in the vaccination centres. At the same time, the tactics decided are consistent with the actual data, as the six months required from the reception of the second dose are not completed for all age groups at the same time. For example, people aged 37-38 begin to complete the six months at the earliest on 26 November, while people under 30 years of age complete the necessary period of six months from 1 December onwards.
