Health expert cautions against allowing inter-regional travel over Easter
A leading health expert has warned against allowing movement between regions during the Easter holidays saying it would fuel a spike in Covid-19 infections.
“Don’t you ask me again about Easter because I will come across as a spoilsport,” Dr George Pavlakis, senior investigator at the human retrovirus section of the American Center for Cancer Research of the National Cancer Institute, told Skai on Wednesday.
Pavlakis said that, based on available figures, coronavirus infections appeared to have peaked in the greater Athens area. However, he added, lifting restrictions on inter-regional travel would lead to a rebound in infections.
“We must contain the pandemic wave so we can have a normal summer,” he said.
Greeks traditionally travel to family-owned homes in the countryside, filing into churches and chapels to celebrate the most significant religious event in the Orthodox calendar.
Reports have suggested that government officials are drafting a plan whereby self-tests will enable movement between regions during the Easter holidays.
Greece Tuesday logged a record number of intubated Covid-19 patients, with daily deaths approaching the 100 mark and infections hovering steadily above 4,000.
More specifically, health authorities announced that 802 patients remained intubated in intensive care units at hospitals Tuesday, while 1,901 had left ICUs.
The number of confirmed new cases stood at 4,033 and there were 93 fatalities due to coronavirus complications.
Greece’s total number of confirmed coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic rose to 301,103, with the death toll climbing to 9,054.
