ANP extension
ANNOUNCEMENTS••Edited
From January 5, travelers arriving in the Netherlands from China will be offered a free self-test and information on its use at Schiphol. Health Minister Kuipers has also asked RIVM to better check the wastewater around Schiphol for virus particles, he writes in a letter to the House of Representatives.
In his letter, Kuipers points out that there is currently no legal basis for mandatory measures in the Netherlands, such as a mandatory corona test for travelers from China.
Legal foundations
In his letter, he therefore asks the Senate to deal quickly with the amendment to the public health law. So that the Netherlands has a legal basis to participate, if European measures are decided later. Consideration of that law is now scheduled for January 17.
Chinese authorities released the company at a rapid pace just weeks ago after years of maintaining a zero-covid policy. Since radical easing, the number of infections has risen rapidly and hospitals are overcrowded.
Millions of people are believed to have been infected and made sick, but China is not open about it. A few days ago, China’s National Health Commission announced it would stop publishing daily covid data. No reason was given for this. The country previously stopped recording infections.
The Dutch government said yesterday the measures were unnecessary. “We monitor the situation through RIVM, which is affiliated with the European health institute ECDC. If RIVM signals that measures are needed, then we are ready. Those signals are not there now,” then he said.
Other countries
Yesterday there was an EU meeting on a common approach. Nothing concrete came of it. Spain and Italy have agreed to announce measures for travelers on flights from China. In Spain, where measures were announced today, travelers must test negative for the coronavirus or show a valid vaccination certificate to enter Spain. Italy will also test people immediately upon arrival.
