Restrictions to prevent Covid-19 transmission will be gradually lifted from mid-March and a 'normal' Easter will most likely follow, Health Minister Thanos Pleveris said in an interview on Tuesday with Capital.gr.
The minister said that the milder Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus allowed greater optimism in this respect. "We see that vaccination coverage has reached a very high level in comparison with September 2021 and, according to the scientists' estimates, we will return to something resembling normality, at least for the next six months. Most of the measures will be lifted within March and we will have a 'normal' Easter and summer, at least for the vaccinated. But we must not be complacent because we don't know how the pandemic will return in the autumn".
Regarding the unvaccinated healthcare staff currently on suspension, he emphasised that they will not be returning to work when their period of suspension ends on March 31. One possibility was that vaccination will become mandatory for anyone working in the national health system, in which case they must choose between vaccination and their job, while another was extending their suspension for as long as the pandemic continues.