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COVID incidence decrease in Russia unstable, partially because of Omicron — Deputy PM

At the moment, the Omicron strain has been found in 16 Russian citizens

MOSCOW, December 14. /TASS/. COVID incidence rate in Russia is decreasing in an unstable fashion, with average daily case growth remaining high, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said Tuesday, adding that the new Omicron strain also affects the epidemiological situation in the country.

"The decrease has not been sustainable for the last four weeks; in retrospective, each week brought either decrease or increase. Last week, the number of regions with growing incidence rate increased, but this week it decreased. This is caused by consistently high numbers of daily incidence - about 30,000 cases - and the spread of the Omicron strain in 74 countries already. Russia did not avoid this situation, too," she said during the president’s meeting with the government.

Overall, the incidence decreased by 7.3% across Russia last week, while five regions had an increase, the Golikova said, adding that 24 regions show no meaningful dynamic, while 56 regions experience an unsustainable decrease.

Currently, the Omicron strain has been found in 16 Russian citizens, she noted.