Due to different risks of Covid-19, Pūce – quarantine, Rinkēvičs

Minister Juris Pūce (“For Development / For”) has been in contact with Covid-19 positive people, so he is in quarantine, the politician informed on Twitter. Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs (“New Unity”), on the other hand, has not been quarantined, although he attended the EU ministerial summit last week, where Covid-19 cases were subsequently discovered. Specialists Rus.Lsm.lv clearthat the various actions are linked to the results of an epidemiological inquiry. –

The owl on Twitter said it had been in contact with a Covid-19 positive on Sunday. He is therefore quarantined and continues to perform his duties remotely.

The Covid-19 test for the politician has not yet been performed.

I have received information that I have been in contact with a COVID19 positive person on Sunday. From now on I am in quarantine, waiting for SPKC instructions on what to do next. When I send, I will go for a test. I continue to perform my duties remotely.

– Juris Pūce (@pucej) October 21, 2020

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Foreign Minister Rinkēvičs, on the other hand, will not go into quarantine, although at the beginning of last week he participated in a two-day meeting of the European Union Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg. Rinkēvičs also reported on his work there on Twitter on Monday and Tuesday.

On Saturday, October 17, international news agencies, including REUTERS, reported that two participants, Rinkevich’s Austrian and Belgian colleagues, were infected with Covid-19. According to REUTERS, the Austrian Foreign Ministry hypothesized that the first minister was infected from the second – that they were sitting next to each other during a working breakfast.

Press Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia Jānis Beķeris Rus.Lsm.lv confirmed that Rinkēvičs has not had direct contact with infected colleagues and therefore does not need to be in quarantine or self-isolation. According to Baker, Rinkevics observed all precautions, always wore a mask and kept a distance.

“As the Secretary-General of the Council of the EU did not provide grounds for believing that the infection took place in Luxembourg and Mr Rinkēvičs did not contact these colleagues, [Covid-19] the test was not performed, “said Baker.

The Center for Disease Prevention and Control (SPCC) also informed that participating in an event with a Covid-19 patient does not automatically mean that the person is at risk of infection.

SPKC epidemiologist Yuri Perevoshchikov said that everything depends on several factors – for example, whether the required distance was observed during the event, what was the area of ​​the room, whether the participants put on masks and so on.

Perevoshchikov also pointed out that in international meetings the procedure is as follows: the epidemiological investigation is carried out by specialists from the country hosting the event. If epidemiologists come to the conclusion that the infection may have affected citizens of other countries, they inform their national counterparts. So far, Latvia has not received information that the participants of the Ministerial Summit in Luxembourg are at risk and have to observe self-isolation.

“It is possible that the epidemiological investigation has not yet been completed, or that local epidemiologists did not see the risks,” Perevoshchikov commented.

The responsible minister, the head of the Ministry of Health Ilze Ņīķele (“For Development / About”) Rus.Lsm.lv said that in recent days she has contacted Rinkēvičs only remotely and did not comment on what happened.

Luxembourg is on the “red list” and requires 10 days of self-isolation upon return. However, this requirement does not apply to certain groups of people, in particular holders of diplomatic passports.

CONTEXT:

In Latvia on June 10 ended An emergency situation was announced on 12 March to contain the new coronavirus. The virus is still circulating and there is no medicine or vaccine against it. Certain restrictions still apply to reduce the spread of Covid-19.

The situation was stable during the summer, but at the end of September the incidence rose sharply and the 14-day cumulative number of Covid-19 cases per 100,000 population exceeded 25 cases. Queues for Covid-19 tests are also increasing. They are recommended for people with symptoms as well as Covid-19 patient contacts so as not to increase the queue.

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