People wait to receive a vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at a vaccination centre in Gostiny Dvor in Moscow, Russia July 6, 2021. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva
MOSCOW - Russian authorities allowed vaccinated Russians and those who have recovered from COVID-19 in the last six months not to get tested for the virus upon arrival from abroad.
Coronavirus deaths in Russia hit another daily record on Tuesday, with authorities reporting 737 more deaths and 23,378 confirmed cases.
Those who are not vaccinated and haven’t had coronavirus recently will be required to take a test within three days of arrival and self-isolate until receiving the results. The amended regulations, announced Tuesday by the country’s public health agency Rospotrebnadzor, will take effect on Wednesday.
The rules in place since May 1 mandated all Russians to take two coronavirus tests within five days of arrival.
The eased regulations come amid reports of state and private testing facilities being overwhelmed with the increased demand.
The daily tally of confirmed infections has more than doubled in the past month, soaring from around 9,000 in early June to over 23,000 this week. As of last week, only 23 million people in Russia - just over 15% of the country’s 146 million population - have received at least one shot of a coronavirus vaccine.
Russia’s state coronavirus task force has reported more than 5.6 million confirmed coronavirus cases and a total of 139,316 deaths in the pandemic. The actual numbers are believed to be higher.
