Greece's COVID-19 measures set to end in March

The Minister of Health, Thanos Plevris, spoke about the complete de-escalation of COVID-19 restriction measures.

Speaking to SKAI, he stated that "by mid-to-late March, all restrictive measures must be lifted in combination with the pressures on the individual national health systems, but without complacency."

However, as he underlined, "all experts say that we must be prepared for autumn."

"The overall picture is that Europe should not be complacent about the end of the pandemic but should be prepared," the health minister was quick to add.

As Plevris noted, "even with the existing strain of the coronavirus, many experts believe that even if it has normal movement, it will have an intensity greater than the simple flu."

Responding to why it was decided to lift the measures, Plevris said that "at the moment we are combining the vaccination movement that we have promoted, even with harsh measures."

"In the adult population we are over 80%, in the total population we are at 71%," he explained.

The minister also said that the total number of intubations has dropped from 680 to 480.

READ MORE: Professor Galiatsatos: COVID-19 will be gone by August if everyone is vaccinated.

A partial lifting of COVID-19 pandemic measures including restrictions related to entertainment venues, school field trips, sports fields and workplaces will go into effect as of February 19, the government said on Wednesday.

Plevris confirmed that bans are lifted for standing room attendance at entertainment venues and school field trips, that sports arena attendance be raised to 50% capacity, and that distance work be limited to 20% of staff in the private and public sectors.

Details on the lifting of restrictions noted above will be detailed by a governmental ministerial decision (KYA) expected before the end of the week, while  measures will go into effect on this coming Saturday.

READ MORE: “Greek tourism, the return”: Hopes for a dynamic “comeback” after COVID – The first estimates.