Minister of Health’s Decree – Summary in ENGLISH

As per decree of the Minister of Health Minister of Health Decree March 23rd 2020 in Greek (in Greek), the following regulations have been now approved:

Unnecessary movements are prohibited as of 1800hrs March 24th until 1800hrs April 13th apart from the following occasions:
1. Transportation to and from the office for work purposes
2. Absolutely necessary visits to government services, services of the wider government sector and local councils, and movements for the purchase of essential foodstuffs and other non-food items from and to the businesses that have not been suspended and for which home delivery is not possible.
3. Visit to Doctor, visit to donate blood, or visit to a pharmacy
4. Visit to a bank when online bank services cannot provide for this
5. Movement in order to assist relatives or compatriots who cannot serve themselves or are under home self-quarantine or are in locations of compulsory confinement (quarantine).
6. Relatives who are going to ceremonies such as funerals, weddings and baptizing and do not exceed the number of 10 people.
7. Movements for the purpose of physical exercise and for the needs of pets as long as they do not exceed the limit of two people and are located in their neighbourhood areas.

Persons will need to carry with them their ID or passport with additional proof of identity when this is asked for by the relevant authorities.

Access to the following locations is prohibited as of 1800hrs March 24th until 1800hrs April 13th:
1. Parks
2. Playgrounds
3. Open sports areas
4. Public Gathering Areas including, public squares, dams, picnic areas, beaches and marinas (the operation of businesses in the above areas is suspended)

As of 1800hrs March 24th until 1800hrs April 13th:

1. Operation of open bazaars, street vendors and open markets is forbidden
2. Work on construction sites shall be terminated, except construction works relating to public utility projects and subject to the relevant permission from the Minister of Transport, Communications and Works.
3. It is prohibited for citizens to attend places of religious worship, such as churches, mosques and other places for prayer.
4. Prohibition of the custom of “lighting a bonfire” with immediate removal of timber or other materials already assembled for this purpose. The responsibility for implementing this ban lies with the local authorities in cooperation with the police.

The State will be relentless towards those who will violate or have violated the state decrees issued to date. In addition to any other criminal liability to offenders, an extrajudicial penalty of EUR 150 will be imposed.

The suspension of all businesses apart from:
1. Businesses and Service labs for disabilities and orthopedic products
2. Operations and labs of medical and factory gas and machines
3. The operations and labs of opticians
4. Business that sell products to the hard-of-hearing
5. Car and Motorcycle service centres
6. Tyre sales businesses
7. Business that sell and fix bicycles
8. Clothes Cleaners
9. Businesses that provide postal and transport services (couriers)
10. Business that provide animal nutrition, animal feed and veterinary medicine
11. Businesses of telecommunication providers to the part pertaining to departments that are responsible for account payment, top-up services and repair of replacement of devices.
12. Operations that sell insecticides and pesticides, fertilizers and agricultural medicines, materials or equipment.
13. Business that sell cars and other mechanized vehicles
14. Funeral Parlours
15. Florists and Flower shops

Of course, all business including the above can offer e-commerce or tele-based commerce services with at-home-delivery.

In addition the businesses that stay open have to adhere to the limitation of one person per 8 square meters.

The following businesses will remain open:
1. All food retail and drink businesses (supermarkets, grocery stores, butchers, Fishermongers, Bakeries, Patisseries, Fruit Grocers, Wine Stores)
2. Pharmacies
3. Food service businesses (restaurants, coffee shops, bars) that offer at-home delivery fast-food drive-in (window-service)
4. Petrol Stations
5. Kiosks and Mini-markets

Also open will be private health services (clinical labs) and car wash businesses, given they apply all announced prevention measures.
The above services are not allowed to sell products sold by retail companies whose operation is suspended.

The Minister of Health may make use of final-year graduates of 4th-year of 6th-year duration of studies, who volunteer (or study) at the Cyprus Medical Schools as well as graduates of the Nursing Schools if so deemed as necessary.

Adhering to relevant legislation which may deem as different, persons in locations for quarantine or under self-quarantine may through phone interviews with any doctor, request the issue of repetitive prescription for chronic-related problems under the condition that:
1- They receive the medication for non-COVID-19 related symptoms
2- The stocks that they possess have ran out or will run out in the period during which they are quarantined.
3- Are not in a position for any reasons to communicate by phone with their personal doctor or specialist for the issue of the repetitive prescription, have not register within the General Health System, and/or are not beneficiaries.

The Doctors that the mentioned persons will call are obligated to:
1. Record the most-detailed medical record that is possible under the circumstances
2. Issue the prescription with the necessary pharmaceutical products, the direction of usage, the required medicinal quantities, for the whole period during which the person/persons that have applied are under quarantine in the approved government locations or under self-quarantine assuming that the medical record taken is deemed as adequate for prescription purposes.
3. In the event that the persons are registered to the GESY, input the prescription in the relevant software so that it can be retrieved by the pharmacist who can execute it and supply it to a third persons who acts on the behalf of the person who is in locations of quarantine or under self-quarantine.
4. In the event that they are not registered in the General Health System or are not beneficiaries, provide handwritten prescription and make the necessary arrangement so the medicines can be collected by a 3rd person on behalf of the quarantined/self-quarantined person.
5. In a logical time-frame inform the doctor that issued the original prescription.

The Decree also changes the List of Essential Government Services and places price caps on specific medicinal products.

As of 1800hrs March 24th until 1800hrs April 13th stores that remain open need to clearly mark the distances to be followed between persons at the cashiers or the waiting areas outside the shops.