The termination of the state of danger is due to the successful fight against the epidemic, a staff member of the duty centre of the Operational Group responsible for the containment of the coronavirus epidemic said at an online press conference held on Tuesday.

Police Lt. Colonel Róbert Kiss highlighted that on Tuesday Parliament is expected to adopt the law about the termination of the state of danger as there is no further need for maintaining the special legal order. With the termination of the state of danger, the travel restrictions applicable to health care and law enforcement workers as well as to government servants are likely to be lifted, and cinemas and theatres will also reopen to visitors, he added.

As the epidemic is not over yet, a state of disease control preparedness must be maintained, he stressed.

Mr Kiss drew attention to the fact that on Monday a disease control deployment unit operating under the auspices of the Operational Group had been formed. The organisation set up with a view to maintaining the containment effort and introducing swift measures should the need arise is headed by the deputy of the Chief Medical Officer, and features representatives of the disaster management agency, the State Centre for Health Care Supplies, the national corps supporting hospital commanders, the ambulance service and the anti-chemical battalion.

He said if any event comes to the Operational Group’s attention which requires an immediate response, the duty centre will notify and if necessary deploy the deployment unit. If there is a need for an intervention in a health care or social institution which has a hospital commander, the duty centre will also notify the national chief hospital commander.

Mr Kiss said the head of the deployment unit is required to immediately attend the affected area or institution and if necessary to take action for the introduction of restrictions. The unit head may impose a visiting ban and restrictions on movement, may make recommendations regarding the use of personal protective equipment and for the reassignment of health care personnel, may initiate the involvement of defence force units in disinfecting missions, and may also initiate area closures in the case of more extensive infected areas. The duty centre must be continuously updated about the measures adopted, their impacts and the number of incidences.

From among those in compulsory home quarantine, as many as 2,729 have agreed to the electronic monitoring of compliance with the rules relating to compulsory home quarantine. At present, the application has 654 active users. On Monday, 617 persons were required to retire to compulsory home quarantine, resulting in 7,545 such restrictive orders in effect in total at this time.

The number of crimes related to the epidemic has risen to 441, including 127 instances of scaremongering, 29 instances of the threat of public endangerment, 133 instances of fraud and 28 instances of the violation of disease control regulations. So far the police have questioned 81 persons in total.

In answer to a question, the Lt. Colonel said the rules of entry into Hungary are laid down in a government decree; according to the relevant legal rule, non-Hungarian nationals – not including the nationals of states covered by bilateral agreements – are not allowed to enter the country’s territory. Regarding travelling abroad, he stressed that it is wise to first consult the website of the consular services about whether entry into the given country is possible.

Spokesperson of the National Police Constabulary Kristóf Gál announced that the Rapid Response Unit’s National Bureau of Investigation had recently instituted an investigation into a case concerning a video recording posted on social media. On Tuesday, in connection with the recording – which became widely known as the ‘paramedic’ video – a woman was questioned as a suspect; a search was conducted in her home where the police seized evidence. He added that the suspect had been released on bail.

At the beginning of June, a video was posted on MSZP’s social media account in which a woman purporting to be a paramedic talked to socialist Member of Parliament Lajos Korózs. In the recording which has since been removed from the party’s account the woman claimed that she worked as a paramedic, and spoke – among others – about patients who had died due to poor care after the vacation of hospital beds. It turned out that the woman did not feature in any health care records, and the Ministry of Human Capacities therefore filed a criminal complaint due to scaremongering. An internal investigation has been launched within MSZP due to the incident.

(MTI/Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister)