Coronavirus – Official: Extending state of emergency crucial

Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, on Thursday said it was crucial for parliament to extend the state of emergency declared last week in connection with protective measures against the novel coronavirus.

At a regular press briefing, Gulyás noted that the state of emergency could only remain in force for a period of 15 days, after which parliament’s approval would be necessary for an extension.

Parliament will continue to meet during the state of emergency, he said, adding that it was unclear for how long. Though the government does not expect a “emergency scenario” to come into play in this regard, it will still prepare for one, Gulyás said.

The actual number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in Hungary could be up to ten or fifteen times higher than the number of confirmed cases, Gergely Gulyás said, adding that 80 percent of those infected may show no symptoms.

The government will continue to release the figures but they should be handled with reservations, similarly to the number of cases in other countries, he told a regular press briefing.

The number of infections is expected to grow rapidly in the next few days, he added.

Compared to many other countries, Hungary introduced measures to combat the spread of the virus at an earlier stage, he said.

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Source: MTI