MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/. Moscow Region residents aged over 65 and people with chronic diseases are switching to their self-isolation at home due to the coronavirus spread, Moscow Region Governor Andrei Vorobyov said on Thursday.
"From this day, Moscow Region residents aged over 65 and people with chronic diseases are switching to the self-isolation regime. This measure concerns 1.1 million people. They may need extra attention and medical care at home. I am requesting primary care physicians and ambulances to closely watch the dynamics of medical emergency calls and prevent critical situations," the governor wrote on his Instagram page.
The Moscow Region authorities imposed a high alert regime from March 13 over the coronavirus spread while schools are closed from March 21 to April 12 for a three-week vacation. All sports events have been cancelled until April 10 and the work of sports schools and specialized sports clubs has been suspended. The Moscow Region authorities have also recommended employers to transfer their staff to work from home.
The Moscow Region governor has also given instructions to stipulate incentive payments to the medical staff for their work with people who have contracted the coronavirus or are suspected to have the infection.
COVID-19 Global Spread
On December 31, 2019, the Chinese authorities reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown etiology in Wuhan, an economic and industrial megalopolis with a population of 11 million.
The virus was identified on January 7 as 2019-nCoV. The World Health Organization declared in January that the new coronavirus outbreak was a public health emergency of international concern, characterizing it as an epidemic with multiple locations.
On February 11, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that the organization gave the novel coronavirus an official name of COVID-19. On March 11, the World Health Organization officially stated that the continuously spreading novel coronavirus was a global pandemic.
As of today, 196 countries and territories reported confirmed coronavirus cases. According to the latest reports, over 457,000 cases of patients infected with the novel coronavirus have been confirmed worldwide. The virus’ death toll has reached over 21,000.
Russia has reported 840 coronavirus cases. Of this number, 38 people have recovered from the disease and two have died.