One
\nyear ago, on 16 March, only three months after the novel
\ncoronavirus was first reported in China, Romania entered a state of emergency to
\nbattle the spread of the pandemic. This exceptional measure lasted 60 days and
\ninvolved a series of drastic measures that restricted some of people’s natural
\nfreedoms and way of life. Schools were closed, as well as most shops,
\nrestaurants, performance venues and cinemas, and many economic activities were
\nsuspended, with the exception of those considered essential. Movement was
\nseverely restricted, with people having to spend most of their time indoors. Special
\nsanitary and health measures were taken and medical facilities were created to
\ntreat Covid patients only. <\/p>\n
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A race
\nfor protective equipment began, especially for medical workers, who everybody
\nlooked at with hope and respect. Doctors, the auxiliary staff and all those employed
\nby the medical system were the new heroes, and rightly so. They were on the
\nfront line, battling an almost unknown disease, risking their lives and those
\nof their families. Others, too, were called upon to ensure essential services
\nat a time when panic began to settle in with respect to the provision essential
\nsupplies. People began to stock up on food and medicine, although their fears soon
\nproved ungrounded. Romania managed, in some respects better than other
\ncountries, to provide its inhabitants with the basic necessities, except
\nmedical services – a problem it had even before the pandemic. <\/p>\n
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There
\nwas also no shortage of political and social disputes between those who opposed
\nand those who promoted the restrictions. Romanians, overall, were relatively
\ncalm, largely respecting the rules and demonstrating sufficient civic responsibility
\nso as not to create additional major tensions. <\/p>\n
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The 60-day-long
\nstate of emergency was followed by a state of alert, which has since been
\nextended on a monthly basis and which implied a new set of restrictions and relaxations
\ndepending on the situation of the pandemic. One year on, the consequences are
\nvisible on all fronts: medical, social, economic and political. More than
\n21,000 people have died. Some 860,000 have had the virus, with some 90% recovering.
\n<\/p>\n
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At
\nthe moment, Romania seems to have entered the third wave of the pandemic, with
\nhospitals under increased pressure, especially intensive care units. There is now
\na race against the clock to vaccinate as many people as possible, this being
\nthe main weapon against the pandemic. There are problems with the supply of
\nvaccines, vaccination capability and priority to vaccination. As a member of
\nthe European Union, Romania benefits from all three vaccines approved in the community
\nbloc, which it receives regularly, in keeping with the delivery calendar
\nestablished in Brussels. (CM)<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Its been one year since Romania first entered the state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":104,"featured_media":87188,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37738],"tags":[35416],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-88306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-today-in-the-news","tag-pandemic"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n