Barbados isn’t locking down, but it’s slowing down for the next two weeks and possibly longer.
Prime Minister Mia Mottley made the announcement this afternoon during an address to the nation where she disclosed additional restrictions, including an extended curfew which will come into effect from Saturday, to stem the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant.
And as Government’s quarantine and isolation facilities continue to come under intense pressure from the escalating COVID-19 cases on the island, she also outlined a new policy to allow persons to isolate at home.
Mottley said beginning September 11, the curfew from Monday to Saturday would now run from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. and on Sunday from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Additionally, she said inhouse dining at fast food restaurants will cease and team and contact sports and hiking would be prohibited for the next two weeks.
The Prime Minister said even though the situation on the island was “not at panic level” just yet, tougher measures needed to be implemented.
The new restrictions came just two days after Mottley promised she would not shut the country down.
“We’re going to have to slow down little bit. I gave this country the assurance on Tuesday we are not locking down and the more I’ve gone on the ground, the more I know that we cannot lock down because the people who will be affected by it are simply too many and the numbers may actually be far more than what we may actually lose from COVID,” Mottley explained.
“The bottom line is that COVID ultimately is our immediate threat and it is against that background that sometimes in a marathon you may have to slow down, even if you don’t lock down and we need to slow down in order to boost vaccines.
“…I’m here to tell you that while Government will do and continues to do all that it must do, this battle now also has to be fought in the nooks and crannies and in the homes of this country,” she added.
With regards to the home isolation policy, Mottley said only persons deemed extremely low-risk would be given permission.
She explained persons would be subjected to wearing a monitoring bracelet or having security guards and CCTV cameras outside their homes.
“Because of the numbers that we are now getting the Ministry of Health officials have settled on a policy that is now going to have to be rolled out…That policy is related to home quarantine and home isolation. It will only be permitted for the extremely low-risk persons, not medium-risk, not high-risk, but those persons who predominantly are minimal-risk to themselves and minimal-risk to the country,” Mottley said, while pointing out that further information on the policy would soon be made available to the public.
The PM also reiterated her call for more adults and children to get vaccinated.
She said although more than one in every two Barbadian adults and one in every five children between the ages of 12 and 18 had already taken a vaccine, those were not sufficient.
Mottley reported that 81 per cent of the persons in primary, secondary and tertiary isolation are unvaccinated. However, she said, the majority of vaccinated persons never reach primary or secondary isolation.
She said Government’s main goals remained to save lives, reduce serious hospitalizations and contain the spread of COVID by following the protocols.
“We need to boost these numbers urgently and in order to boost these numbers we have to expand the fight and get more people on board,” Mottley said.
The Prime Minister said Government’s vaccination drive would be boosted by community vaccine stations and private medical doctors.
She explained those stations would be visiting communities around the island so persons did not have to travel far from their homes.
Mottley said her administration would also allow some private doctors to administer the vaccines to persons free of cost. Those doctors would be compensated by Government for their services.
She also announced the decision to appoint a National COVID-19 Public Advisor along with an established public relations firm that would work with the Department of Public Affairs and the Government Information Service in disseminating information to the public.
While that person was not named, Mottley said she hoped to conclude negotiations with them over the weekend.
(randybennett@barbadostoday.bb)
