“The Action Group responsible for the functioning of enterprises that are vital in the epidemic situation has begun operations under the leadership of Minister of Defence Tibor Benkő”, the Ministry’s State Secretary announced on Tuesday in Budapest.

“The task of the Action Group is to protect those service and production capacities, and transport, energy and pharmaceutical companies, whose operations are vital in Hungary within the current epidemic situation”, István Szabó told reporters.

“We have identified some 140 vital service providers and production capacities, and if necessary, the management of these will be taken over by Hungarian Defence Force staff groups deployed on site”, the politician added.

The State Secretary also reported on the fact that particular attention is being paid to the security of all healthcare institutions belonging to the Hungarian Defence Force, in the interests of preventing the spread of the virus.

Mr. Szabó also spoke about the fact that so-called single gate entry has been introduced at the Hungarian Armed Forces Medical Centre in Budapest. This means that with the exception of hospital staff involved in emergency care, people can only enter the hospital via a single gate after their temperatures have been taken, they sanitize their hands, and have filled out a questionnaire aimed at assessing their risk of infection. “If someone is suspected of being infected with the virus, they will be quarantined and provided emergency care”, the State Secretary explained.

On Friday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced that ten action groups will be set up within the framework of protecting against the coronavirus, one of which is the action group responsible for the functioning of enterprises that are vital in the epidemic situation.

(MTI)