Update – 19/08/2020

As of the latest update by the Greek authorities yesterday, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 diagnosed cases in Greece is 7,472. Α new daily record of 269 coronavirus cases was confirmed yesterday. The previous record, set on August 13, was 262. Two new fatalities were reported, raising the death toll to 232. The number of patients treated in intensive care units stands at 25, while 137 patients have exited the intensive care unit.

Deputy Minister of Civil Protection Nikos Hardalias stated that data suggest that tourism is not responsible for the upward trend in the number of confirmed cases. More specifically, Hardalias said the 615 imported cases – from July 1 to Monday – constitute a mere 17% of a total of 3,666 recorded cases for the same period. He said 83% of the confirmed cases are domestic and are associated with public gatherings and a lax application of health rules. He also said that some travellers are confirmed as Covid-19 positive at their place of residence but tracing leads to areas they visited during their vacation.

Regarding the cases reported yesterday:

• 39 were detected during the tests carried out at Greece’s entry points
• 10 are imported cases, which requested testing voluntarily
• 98 cases were detected in Attica region, 15 of which are related to travel within the country
• 70 cases were detected in Thessaloniki region, 25 of which are related to known influxes and 3 to travel within the country
• 2 cases were detected in Achaia
• 1 case was detected in Evros
• 2 cases were detected in Dodecanese
• 3 cases were detected in Ilia
• 6 cases were detected in Imathia
• 1 case was detected in Ioannina
• 4 cases were detected in Karditsa, 3 of which are associated with a confirmed case
• 1 case was detected in Kerkyra
• 2 cases were detected in Kozani
• 3 cases were detected in Corinth
• 10 cases were detected in Cyclades
• 2 cases were detected in Larissa
• 2 cases were detected in Magnesia
• 1 case was detected in Messinia
• 2 case were detected in Pella
• 1 case was detected in Pieria
• 1 case was detected in Fthiotis
• 1 case was detected in Florina
• 3 cases were detected in Chalkidiki
• 4 cases were detected in Chania

HEALTH

• Greece will start receiving 3 million doses of the potential Covid-19 vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford in collaboration with AstraZeneca if it passes phase four of the clinical trial, Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias said Tuesday. Kikilias said the clinical trials have reached phase three while phase four is expected to be completed in November. “At the end of December, January, February, March, May and June, if all goes well, Greece will receive its allocation from the agreed vaccine in seven deliveries,” he told broadcaster Skai. “We will start with 700,000 doses in December, which will be a single or double dose, and around 3 million doses in total,” he added.

• The AHEPA University Hospital in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, will be closed until Friday for cleaning and disinfection purposes after 14 medical and nursing staff tested positive for the coronavirus, the Health Ministry said in a statement Tuesday. Authorities said that new Covid-19 cases in the northern port city will be treated at the Ippokrateio General Hospital, the Papageorgiou General Hospital and the Katerini General Hospital, down the coast. Hospitals around the country are routinely testing all staff returning from vacations to ensure that any carriers of Covid-19 are not exposed to other employees and patients.

• Teams of doctors and health professionals from the Region of Attica will set up a permanent centre at the port of Piraeus to run tests on returning holidaymakers, in an effort to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country. The health centre, which will start work on Tuesday, will be set up in Piraeus’ Gate E1 and will conduct random molecular tests to travellers with suspicious symptoms such as fever or cough, with an emphasis on those returning from high risk destinations.

BUSINESS

• In response to the continued climb in coronavirus cases, companies are introducing a series of measures ahead of the return of employees from their summer vacations. Many large corporations, including banks, have decided that workers who took leave in August will work from home for the first seven days after returning from vacation. During this period they will undergo diagnostic tests covered by the company. Tests are also planned for returning employees whose physical presence is necessary in the workplace, especially if they took vacations in areas with high infection rates.

• Other companies are requesting that employees complete a questionnaire to assess the degree of risk, while they have made the use of masks mandatory in their offices for the first seven days after workers return from leave.

MEASURES/RESTRICTIONS

• Twelve policemen from the Agios Panteleimonas police station in central Athens were placed in a seven-day quarantine after it emerged that a man they had detained has tested positive for coronavirus, according to a news report on Tuesday. The Somalian national who was detained in the police station said he felt unwell and was transferred to Evangelismos Hospital where the test was carried out, broadcaster Skai reported. Health authorities have disinfected the police station.

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