COVID situation quickly deteriorating in Ukraine

Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast is on the verge of reaching the
country’s Red quarantine status, Health Minister Victor Lyashko stated on Jan.
19. Lviv, Rivne, Sumy and Chernihiv oblasts are firmly in the second-highest, or
Orange zone, and are expected to also face more severe lock-downs,
pravda.com.ua reported.

Also, the omicron strain of COVID is now found in
eight regions across Ukraine, the Health Ministry reported. In particular,
these are: Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Odesa, Poltava, Ternopil, and Lviv
oblasts and the city of Kyiv.

In all, 12,815 people were diagnosed with COVID-19 in
Ukraine on Jan, 19, and 163 died from it and its complications.

James Hydzik: The rapid rises of COVID cases in oblasts such as 
Ivano-Frankivsk presents a puzzle, as the worst-hit areas are largely those
where the omicron variant has not been officially found yet. It’s unclear
whether these sudden rises are due to the delta strain or omicron, though the
spread acts closer to the latter. Why testing would not catch this, or what
political or social advantage would be gained by downplaying the data, is
unclear.