In response to the worsening of the Covid-19 situation in China, Lithuania, together with other European Union (EU) countries, is reviewing safety recommendations, writes Lithuanian public media LRT.
EU experts decided to call on member states to require Covid-19 tests for passengers arriving from China. However, Audrius Ščeponavičius, head of the Public Health Department of the Lithuanian Ministry of Health, stated that this does not mean a new threat to Europe. «According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention, the same strains are prevalent in China and Lithuania. So, it is not a new threat. That is why the EU expert meeting only made recommendations for risk management,» he said.
One of the recommendations is to require travelers from China to present a negative Covid-19 test that is done no more than 48 hours before their flight.
Ščeponavičius said that some countries with direct arrivals from China are already requiring testing, while others are considering the issue. Lithuania is following the information and is ready to adapt as needed.
About 1,600 travelers from China come to Lithuania every year.
Another EU recommendation is wastewater monitoring. The representative of the Ministry of Health stated that this is already being done in Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipeda, and Lithuania is considering the possibility of doing it at Vilnius International Airport.
According to the information provided by the Ministry of Health of Lithuania, there are currently no plans to restrict travel from Lithuania to China. Meanwhile, about a dozen countries have introduced new rules for travelers from China as it experiences a major wave of Covid-19 cases after lifting restrictions.
Full article read here: https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/1860316/lithuania-to-follow-new-eu-recommendations-on-travel-from-china
Read also: EU recommends member states to request Covid-19 tests from Chinese travellers