Experts in Greece agree to easing of pandemic measures

The Scientific Committee advising the government on the handling of the pandemic has agreed to ease several ongoing measures after convening on Wednesday. Specifically, the committee agreed to increase capacity at sporting events, to allow for standing customers at entertainment venues, and to restart field strips for schools. However, the committee was not in favor of allowing the organization of large events celebrating carnival to proceed.

The committee agreed to the proposed maximum capacity for sporting events to be fixed at 50%. Additionally, according to information available to Kathimerini, as customers are only allowed in entertainment venues upon displaying their vaccination certificates, they also approved of allowing standing customers. Finally, schools will be able to organize field trips starting March 1.

Large carnival street events will still not be allowed, however. There was a reported discussion of permitting the organization of indoor events to celebrate carnival, where the display of vaccine certificates would be mandatory. The experts are concerned that parades could become super spreader events, which combined with the increased travelling recorded during the days of carnival, could quickly disrupt ongoing efforts to contain the pandemic.