COVID-19 cases in Ukraine begin to decline again

COVID-19 cases caused by the coronavirus have begun to
decline in the last three days, indicating the second peak of the first wave
may have passed, according to the statistics of the National Security and
Defense Council. An estimated 706 infections were reported on June 29, preceded
by 646 on June 28 and 948 on June 27 after a daily record of 1,109 cases was
set on June 26. That same day (June 26), a record 142 infections were reported
in the city of Kyiv. An estimated 12 died of the disease on June 29 nationwide,
and 88 recovered. The highest infection rate remained in the Lviv region on the
Polish border. The highest hospital occupancy rate of 71% was reached on June
28 in the Zakarpattia region, which borders Hungary. On June 27, a record 237
patients were hospitalized nationally.

Ukraine will continue to pursue its adaptive
quarantine approach to the pandemic in order to balance both health and
economic concerns, PM Denys Shmyhal said in an interview with BBC Ukraine
published on June 30. “This model allows for balancing on the edge between not
closing the entire country and economy, and preserving the life and health of
people,” he said. “We now have an advantage compared to when the quarantine was
introduced in March. We have a ready medical system: we have bought measures of
individual protection and have provided for, at minimum, the first level of the
first wave of medical institutions.”

Ukraine has had worse dynamics with the COVID-19
disease than European countries because those more strictly upheld preventive
measures, Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said this weekend, as reported by the
pravda.com.ua news site. Among these recommendations are excessive crowding on
public transport, ignoring individual protective measures such as wearing masks
and not maintaining social distancing. The National Police reported writing 355
fines for such violations on June 25 and 26.

Zenon Zawada: It will be
apparent by the week’s end whether the second peak is behind us. That would be
a very positive development for the Zelensky administration, which has enough
problems on its hands, particularly the threat of additional floods this week.