Too early to consider reopening shopping malls – Lithuanian healthmin

VILNIUS – It is too early to consider the reopening of shopping malls in Lithuania, given that the coronavirus situation in certain European countries continues to deteriorate, Health Minister Arunas Dulkys has said.

“My message today is that the nearest two or three weeks will show what will happen with the incidence rates. It would be good if all our people had that historical memory – just remember where Lithuania was in the middle of December. We were the first in the world and the first in Europe in terms of coronavirus incidence rates and our hospitals reached the occupancy rates of 95 percent or even more. Now a similar situation can be seen in Paris,” he told the reporters on Monday.

“I don’t think that we all want to get back to that time and I think that we have to get all those things under control,” the minister added.

Large shopping malls, which are still waiting for green light to reopen, have proposed a number of measures to ensure their safe operation, for instance, weekly testing of employees and separation of visitors’ flows.

All shops with access from the street have already been reopened in Lithuania. Meanwhile, shopping malls are only open for access to grocery stores, pharmacies, optical stores and pet stores whereas other stores within malls are only allowed to stay open for pick-up and delivery.