He said that the public had become complacent and were behaving as if the pandemic was over. The health minister acknowledged that people were tired of having to take precautions against spreading the virus.
Weddings, young people in entertainment centres, gyms… these venues are the main sources of infection, studies have shown, he said.
The amount of inspections on public places could never be enough, said Üstel. The local police should be more active also, he said.
Unvaccinated members of the public will not be permitted to enter casinos and other places of entertainment. This will make it easier to perform antigen tests at the door, he said.
“We are working with all our strength not to close the country….”, he said.
Vaccination Numbers
The health minister said that 158,556 people have had a first dose of the vaccine, 140,000 of whom have had a second dose. This number is insufficient, Üstel said.
“We think we have vaccinated 35-40 percent of the public, our target is 70percent. We were aiming to reach this goal by the end of July, but people did not take up the offer of vaccination during Bayram. We will hit this target by the end of August”, he said.
