Ukraine has registered 8,513 new cases of COVID-19 as of 9 a.m. on Dec. 22, bringing the total number of cases in the country since the start of the pandemic to 979,506.
Currently, there are 362,321 active cases across the country. In the past 24 hours, 1,318 people were hospitalized, while 14,020 have recovered. Ukraine has registered 232 deaths in the past 24 hours. A total of 600,288 patients have recovered and 16,897 have died in Ukraine since the beginning of the pandemic.
The largest numbers of new cases have been recorded in the city of Kyiv (1,159), Dnipropetrovsk Oblast (992), Odesa Oblast (914), Zaporizhia Oblast (665), and Kyiv Oblast (559).
Ukraine’s daily COVID-19 cases, deaths, and recoveries from Nov. 1 to Dec. 21, 2020. All data were released by the Ministry of Health.
In the past 24 hours, Ukrainian laboratories have carried out 26,341 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and 20,355 antibody tests. Over 5.3 million PCR tests have been conducted since the start of the pandemic.
Ukraine’s daily new COVID-19 cases and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, the most accurate way of diagnosing the novel coronavirus, between Nov. 1 and Dec. 21, 2020.
As of Dec. 21, almost 41% of hospital beds allocated for COVID-19 patients were occupied.
On Dec. 19, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health said it changed its testing approach. Now patients with any symptoms of severe respiratory disease are recommended to take a PCR test. Before that, only those who had COVID-19 or pneumonia symptoms were tested by state labs.
Patients with suspected COVID-19 cases and those returning from countries with a rapid spread of the infection will be tested with antigen tests. These tests use a nasal swab to detect the infection and can produce results in 15 minutes. If patients test positive for the coronavirus with an antigen test, they will also need to confirm it with a PCR test.
On Dec. 14, Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers approved new pandemic restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the country. Starting on Dec. 19, Ukraine will forbid holding mass events in educational institutions that involve more than one group or class, as well as holding celebrations, banquets, master classes, and public events in entertainment venues and restaurants.
Payment transactions in restaurants will only be allowed until 10 p.m.
The government will also ban having more than one person per 10 square meters in museums, exhibitions, and galleries. Holding religious events indoors with more than one person per 5 square meters or outdoors if there is not 1.5 meter in between participants also won’t be allowed.
Previous restrictions will also remain in force. In particular, Ukrainians must wear masks in public transport and public spaces and carry identification documents when outside their homes. The number of passengers in all public transport besides the metro must be limited to the number of available seats. Cinemas and other cultural venues can only be filled to half-capacity, while gyms and fitness centers can operate if they have less than one person per 20 square meters.
On Dec. 17, the Ukrainian parliament passed a law to fine business owners if their employees or customers don’t wear face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
According to the law initiated by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, when employees notice a customer isn’t wearing a mask, they have to stop servicing them and call the police if the person refuses to put on their mask.
A mask has to cover both the nose and mouth.
If employees of a restaurant or a museum, for example, don’t follow this protocol, sanitary-epidemiological service workers can fine these businesses $122–$183.
