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Coronavirus – Orbán: Gradual restart of life planned under strict schedule in 2nd phase of measures
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The first phase of protective measures against the novel coronavirus will end next weekend and the government will introduce new rules to replace the curfew restrictions in order to gradually restart life, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Friday.
In the first phase, Hungary was prepared for a worst-case scenario, Orbán told public Kossuth radio. The second phase will involve a strict schedule for restarting life in Hungary, he added. The precondition for this will be to still protect the most vulnerable people, including the elderly, the chronically ill and residents of big cities, he said. Special rules will be introduced for them, which are currently being planned, Orbán added.
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Hungary is keeping an eye on Austria’s schedule of reopening shops, schools and museums, he said.
“Perhaps they are progressing a little bit faster than what my life instinct tells me would be suitable in Hungary,” he added.
Orbán said, however, that Hungary should follow Austria in a disciplined and calm manner. “We should not progress as quickly as the Austrians but we should not fall too far behind, either,” he added.
Commenting on the rules planned for big cities, he said that authorising mayors for weekends to introduce extra restrictions had worked well so far. After May 4, general rules will be put in place and mayors in “special” cities will be authorised to implement their own restrictions, he added.
Concerning the decision to free up hospital beds, he said the government had to create the right conditions to ensure that no patient gets neglected.
“If we do not want to live life endlessly locked up, like being in a bunker, or until a vaccine is found, the timing of which is uncertain … then we have two possibilities,” he said.
Once life is successfully restarted, “there could be some surprises” if the virus breaks loose, he said. Several tens of thousands of hospital beds and thousands of ventilators would be needed, which would be impossible to provide, he added.
As a result, the responsible course of action is to prepare the capacities for a worst-case scenario, he said. The first phase of protection against the virus aimed to slow down the spread of the virus, in order to prepare the health-care system for an unprecedented load of work, he added.
Orbán said not a single Hungarian would be left behind, “we will fight for everyone”.