The latest estimates show that the pandemic is accelerating virtually across the country
The Finnish authorities have advised residents to switch to remote work wherever possible due to the worsening situation with the coronavirus. This was announced at a press conference on Thursday by the Minister for Local Government Affairs, Sirpa Paatero.
“The government recommends that all public sector employees work remotely, if they have the opportunity. The same recommendation applies to private sector employees”, – she said.
In addition, the government is further reducing the number of participants in public events. In some regions, it is recommended that they be banned, and in some regions (so far, only one region), that the number of participants be limited to 10.
The number of coronavirus infections in Finland increased by 241 per day, reaching 12,944 on Thursday. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 350 deaths have been recorded in the country. According to the latest estimates, the pandemic is accelerating virtually throughout the country, with more than half of the cases remaining unresolved.
From 19 March to 13 May, Finland closed its borders to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Since 19 September, the country has allowed entry without the need to be quarantined from countries where the number of coronavirus cases has been 25 per 100,000 in the last two weeks. From 1 October, for countries where this threshold has been exceeded, entry without 14 days of quarantine may be allowed if there are two negative coronavirus tests – the first one must be done before travel and the second one after arrival in the country. This measure will only apply to EU countries, the Schengen area and countries on the EU’s list of third countries, and will not apply to Russia or the USA in particular.
The Finnish-Russian border will remain closed to tourist traffic until at least November 10.