The Lithuanian government eliminated requirements for travellers arriving in Lithuania from EU countries to take COVID-19 tests, irrespectively of their vaccination status, announced LRT.lt.
The changes will come into effect on Tuesday, February 15, and will also apply to travellers from Switzerland, the UK, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican. Until now, EU travellers had to present evidence of immunity against COVID-19 or a negative test.
According to Health Minister Arūnas Dulkys, these restrictions no longer make sense, since travellers do not represent a higher risk of COVID-19 spread. Travellers from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) will still need to present a negative test, unless they have been vaccinated or recently recovered from the virus. Dulkys emphasized that the EU digital COVID certificate will still be valid in Lithuania, but for use in other areas than travel.
Lithuania has confirmed 4,800 new coronavirus infections and 15 deaths from COVID-19 from February 13-14. Six of the fatalities were fully vaccinated. Of the new cases, 4,136 were first-time infections, 656 were second and six were third. The number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals now stands at 1,262, including 96 ICU cases. The 14-day infection rate has inched down to 5,010.6 per 100,000 people, with the seven-day percentage of positive tests up to 50.7 percent. Overall, around 820,100 people in Lithuania have tested positive for the virus since the start of the pandemic and the death toll has surpassed 8,000.
According to the health minister, the COVID-19 pandemic has already peaked in Lithuania, and the situation is beginning to show signs of improvement. The percentage of positive results, and the pandemic momentum in individual institutions clearly show a downward trend, and the ICU situation remains stable, Dulkys said.
LRT.lt
