Today, September 2, the government adopted amendments to the BOM rules * to enable medical tourism to be implemented in certain cases and to clarify the conditions for individuals who cease self-isolation or home quarantine to go to their home country. . The regulation annotation also includes possible indicators that could be used to assess Covid-19 public health risks.
In order to ensure the possibility for persons from other countries who are subject to the special precautions, the government has decided to allow such persons to continue the ongoing treatment in Latvia or to receive health services, the non-receipt of which could have a significant impact on the health situation of the person, and the government has decided to allow these persons to enter Latvia, and when he or she receives health services, the alien will be able to avoid self-isolation. At the same time, a number of conditions will be mandatory in order not to impair the epidemiological situation in the country
- the receipt of the treatment (diagnosis and treatment) of the individual concerned within the framework of health tourism should be coordinated with the Health Inspectorate;
- have a negative Covid-19 test carried out no later than three days before arrival;
- a person outside the receipt of treatment will have to observe self-isolation in the medical treatment institution;
- The Covid-19 test will have to be performed within 24 hours of arrival in Latvia; it must be repeated on days 5-7 if the person is staying in Latvia for more than five days;
- the person will have to bear all medical costs if the Covid-19 infection is confirmed.
These procedures will not apply to foreigners who would like to receive services provided by medical treatment institutions in Latvia, which are not directly related to treatment.
The rules also specify the rule relating to the return of foreign nationals to their home country for a period of less than 14 days during which self-isolation is to be observed. . In particular, the terms of the BOM include conditions for aliens to travel to their home country during self-isolation. For example, these people have to contact the State Police by informing them about this fact (contact the Health Inspectorate accordingly during home quarantine), and when travelling to the airport, it is mandatory for a person to use a mouth-and-nose cover (medical facial mask to be used during home quarantine) at the airport and on the aircraft.
The Ministry of Health also informs that the Cabinet regulations annotation includes possible indicators or indicators that could be used for the analysis of the situation, Covid-19 for the assessment of public health risks, in order to take decisions regarding the mitigation or reinforcement of any precautionary measures. . This principle has been worked up to now, but the potential development scenarios have now been highlighted more specifically, the deteriorated epidemiological situation in Latvia. s. These criteria should be assessed in nuanced terms, on a case-by-case basis, on a case-by-case basis, taking into account other aspects and according to the epidemiological investigation, such as contamination conditions, possible causes of outbreaks or affected population groups, etc. . The socio-economic situation, the spread of morbidity abroad and others should also be assessed. I.
For example, there is currently a low risk of Covid-19 spread in Latvia, which means that morbidity rates are low, there is no increase in morbidity, mostly all cases are traceable and a large proportion of them have been imported from other countries, there are no more outbreaks with high numbers of patients or a high risk of Covid-19 distribution. .
At the same time, it should be recognised that, in general, the risks of Covid-19 spread in the European Union are increasing, due to increased morbidity rates in other EU countries and as a particular risk to be aware of the rapid increase in Covid-19 morbidity in Lithuania. Therefore, the participation of each resident of Latvia is very important, taking into account the security measures laid down so far. . It should also be aware that travelling outside Latvia is associated with a high risk of importing Covid-19 into Latvia.
If the number of cases in Latvia increased rapidly and an uncontrolled local spread of the disease was detected, which would mean that people are infected here even in Latvia, as well as a number of outbreaks with a large number of people affected, which would already burden the healthcare system, a high risk of Covid-19 spread would be identified. . This would serve as a basis for determining, for example, the use of masks in public transport, reducing the number of people who can gather at events and assessing the need for other additional restrictions. U. On a similar basis, the situation would be assessed if the risk were medium or even very high. .
You can view the full information HERE.
* Amendments to Cabinet Regulation No. of 9 June 2020 .360 'epidemiological security measures to limit the spread of Covid-19 infection'
Prepared by: Anna Strapcāne
Communication Specialist of the Ministry of Health
Phone: 67876106; 20388356
Email: anna.strapcane@vm.gov.lv