MOSCOW, October 20. /TASS/. The coronavirus situation in Moscow has been deteriorating, and cases have been increasing by 30% for five weeks in a row, Deputy Mayor Anastasia Rakova said in an interview with TASS.
"The coronavirus situation in Moscow has been deteriorating. Another rise in the number of cases this fall is different from the previous ones. For the first time, we have recorded a peak number of coronavirus cases (30%) for five weeks in a row. We have not observed such a high growth rate in any previous period," Rakova said.
According to her, the medical system has adapted to such conditions for a year and a half. "During this time, over 11,000 reserve beds were created in the city, which are fully adapted to work with COVID-19 and make it possible to minimize the use of other specialized medical institutions. Today, 80% of facilities involved in working with coronavirus are a reserve bed fund which allows us not to reduce the volume of planned hospital medical care," she said.
The deputy mayor stressed that if this exponential growth of new cases was not stopped, then the available facilities in the capital would fail to suffice in a few weeks.
Elderly people are the ones most seriously ill. That said, 60% of beds in COVID-19 hospitals and 70% of intensive care capacities are required for the elderly. "Sadly, among those who died from coronavirus, the share of seniors is very high (86%)," the deputy mayor noted.
"The situation with vaccination is quite the opposite though. People aged over 60 make up only 23% of all vaccinated Moscow residents. Only a third of all seniors in Moscow have been vaccinated. That’s the reason why the decision we took is primarily aimed at protecting these two most vulnerable categories of citizens from the disease," Rakova concluded.