RUSSIALINK: “Coronavirus in Russia: The Latest News | April 9” – Moscow Times

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 9, 2020)

As the new coronavirus that has killed more than 88,000 people worldwide continues to spread, Russia has stepped up its measures to tackle the pandemic and prevent its spread within the country.

There have been 10,131 cases of coronavirus infections reported in Russia so far and 76 deaths.

April 9: 3 things you need to know today

1. Russia’s number of coronavirus cases surpassed 10,000 on Thursday as new infections surged over the past 24 hours. The country confirmed 1,459 new coronavirus infections, bringing the country’s official number of cases up to 10,131 and marking a new record one-day increase in infections.

2. President Vladimir Putin announced an extension of the nationwide “non-working week” until April 30 after the country registered a sharp increase in coronavirus cases. Speaking in a televised address, he added that he would delegate the decisionmaking power on anti-coronavirus measures to regional authorities given the regional differences in infection rates.

3. Putin has signed legislation imposing severe punishment – including up to five years in prison – for people convicted of spreading false information about the coronavirus. The legislation also imposes punishments for people breaking coronavirus quarantine rules, including up to seven years in prison.

More updates

• The health minister of Russia’s northwestern republic of Komi has resigned after the remote region became one of the country’s hotspots for the coronavirus.
• Moscow is planning to track foreign tourists’ movements through smartphone geolocation for coronavirus prevention after Russia reopens its national borders, the Kommersant business daily reported Thursday.\
• Coronavirus patients in Moscow have started to receive blood plasma transfusions from recovered patients, the city’s deputy mayor for social development said. Blood plasma from coronavirus survivors has been found to help current patients recover from the virus.
• Russia’s consumer protection watchdog Rospotrebnazdor said that more than 1 million coronavirus tests have been carried out across the country.

April 8

• Russia confirmed 1,175 new coronavirus cases, bringing the country’s official number of cases up to 8,672 and marking a new record one-day increase in infections.
• Russia will reach the peak of its coronavirus outbreak in 10-14 days, the head of the Federal Biomedical Agency said. Veronika Skvortsova predicted that the country’s number of infections will start to fall in early to mid-June.
• Putin has ordered the government to automatically renew documents for Russian citizens, including passports and driver’s licenses, for as long as the coronavirus situation persists. Speaking at a televised conference with regional governors and other officials, he also ordered the government to create a business support program within five days and said that doctors will receive a monthly bonus while dealing with the pandemic.
• Moscow police will now be able to directly issue fines to residents who violate lockdown orders, according to an agreement between the Interior Ministry and the city government.
• Russia has now sent coronavirus test kits to more than 30 countries, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said at a meeting of the government’s coronavirus task force.
• Russian Railways will reduce the number of Sapsan high-speed trains between Moscow and St. Petersburg to four per day in each direction amid reduced demand due to the coronavirus.
• The airport in Grozny, the capital of Russia’s republic of Chechnya, will require all passengers arriving from Moscow to provide proof of a negative coronavirus test starting April 11.
• Moscow City Duma deputy Mikhail Timonov has reportedly tested positive for coronavirus. He had attended city council meetings as recently as April 1, when it voted to impose fines on Muscovites who violate lockdown orders.

April 7

• Russia confirmed 1,154 new coronavirus infections, bringing the country’s number of cases up to 7,497 and marking a new record one-day increase in infections.
• The head of a top Russian research center told Putin that his lab was ready to start human trials of experimental coronavirus vaccines in June.
• Putin has asked health experts whether it would be possible to end Russia’s paid “non-working” period sooner than planned. He originally declared a “non-working” week from March 28 to April 5, then extended the period until April 30. During the meeting, he added that the peak of the coronavirus epidemic in Russia hasn’t passed yet.
• The head doctor at Moscow’s Davydovsky hospital, Yelena Vasiliyeva, has tested positive for coronavirus, the Mash Telegram channel reported. Because she continued to work and attend conferences while waiting for the test results, more than 500 patients and doctors who were in contact with her are now self-quarantining and getting tested for the virus.
• Russia’s national carrier Aeroflot operated a flight from Moscow to New York today to return U.S. nationals stuck in Russia due to its closed border and suspension of international flights. Aeroflot’s last Moscow-New York flight was abruptly canceled on April 3 after the plane had already started taxiing to the runway.
• Russia’s largest business associations have called on the government to introduce a sweeping package of measures to support employers amid the coronavirus lockdown. In a letter to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, firms asked the government to cover two-thirds of employees’ salaries for those who cannot work due to the shutdown. They also requested subsidies to cover businesses’ rent and loan repayments. So far, the government has offered firms only tax deferrals and instructed state-run banks to provide low-interest loans to the worst-hit companies.
• Russia has conducted more than 795,000 coronavirus tests so far, the federal consumer protection watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said.

April 6

• Russia confirmed 954 new coronavirus infections, bringing the official number of cases to 6,343 and marking a new record one-day increase.
• Russia will send $1 million to the World Health Organization to help in the fight against coronavirus, according to a decree signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
• Three Russian Orthodox priests in Moscow have been hospitalized with coronavirus, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported. Two other priests are showing symptoms of the virus but their diagnosis hasn’t been confirmed.
• It is “unacceptable” for Russia’s regions to close their borders with other regions of the country, Mishustin said at a meeting with regional envoys after the republic of Chechnya sealed off its borders. The Kremlin also called such measures “excessive.”
• Russia’s health watchdog Rosdravnadzor has developed an “express” coronavirus test that can test at 94% accuracy within 40 minutes, the Industry and Trade Ministry said.
• Three regions of Russia – the Irkutsk region, Tomsk region and Krasnoyarsk region – have begun ordering all people arriving from Moscow and St. Petersburg to self-isolate for two weeks in a move to prevent the spread of coronavirus. …

[Article also appeared at themoscowtimes.com/2020/04/09/coronavirus-in-russia-the-latest-news-april-9-a69117]