Lithuania may tighten the rules for issuing Covid immunity certificates, the country's chief epidemiologist has suggested. Children may be required to get the so-called opportunity passports, while another national lockdown is a possibility.
The government is considering to make immunity certificates mandatory for children over 12 – they are currently required from people over 16 – and stop issuing them to unvaccinated people who get tested for Covid-19, Loreta Ašoklienė told BNS.
“Discussions are ongoing for the age limit to be reduced to probably 12 years, and also to probably renounce tests. Decisions have not been made, but discussions are definitely ongoing,” she said, adding that children aged 12–16 are a “big and risky” group.
The immunity certificates, which are required for accessing a range of shops and services, have so far helped to manage the pandemic without closing down businesses and other activities, Ašoklienė noted.
Pandemic has not peaked yet
Lithuania has been reporting among the highest coronavirus infection rates in Europe, with 1,386.2 new cases per 100,000 people over the last 14 days.
The pandemic situation is complicated not only in Lithuania, but also across the world, Ašoklienė said.
“The situation is very complicated. The number of cases continues to rise, and we have definitely not reached the peak of this wave yet. We will also see the effect of the long All Souls' weekend, as the situation might further deteriorate,” the chief epidemiologist said.
It is hard to predict when infections will peak, she added, and the situation will depend on people's behaviour. The coming holidays will also be an important factor.
Third lockdown possible
Lithuania's government introduced a second national lockdown at around this time last year. Although daily infection numbers are around four times higher at the moment, there are no plans yet to put the country under another lockdown.
“Our main weapon now is vaccines, so people are being encouraged to get vaccinated so they don't fall ill, or if they do, so they have mild symptoms. Moreover, we see a stable situation in ICU wards. Although around 150 beds are occupied, the number is not growing that fast,” Ašoklienė said.
She does not rule out, however, that if the situation gets worse, a national lockdown could be introduced, but for a short period of time.
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