MP Radutsky: Peak of third COVID-19 wave expected in Ukraine in few weeks

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada's Committee on National Health, Medical Assistance and Health Insurance, MP from the ruling Servant of the People Party Mykhailo Radutsky says the peak of the third COVID-19 wave is expected in Ukraine in a few weeks.

"Some 24,800 new COVID-19 cases and 450 deaths per day are predicted in Ukraine in early April. Scientists of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine came to such conclusions, having analyzed the trends in the spread of the disease," he wrote on Facebook on March 24.

Three regions, namely Ivano-Frankivsk, Zakarpattia, and Chernivtsi regions are in the lead by number of hospitalizations and deaths, he said.

Read alsoUkraine may face up to 24,000 new COVID-19 cases per day in early April – forecastStatistics from these regions indicate it took about two months between the start of growth to peak rates for new cases. The peak mortality rate in these regions has exceeded the similar indicators of the autumn wave by about 50%.

The experts predict such dynamics in the development of the epidemic are expected throughout the country, he said.

"Currently, the epidemic situation is close to critical. The country continues seeing anti-records: 5,438 people were hospitalized, 342 died over the past 24 hours. In the autumn, the highest mortality rate was 285 fatalities. Therefore, unfortunately, more people die every day than at the peak of the previous pidemic wave," Radutsky added.

COVID-19 in Ukraine: Latest developments

• Ukraine said 14,174 new active COVID-19 cases were confirmed across the country in the past 24 hours as of March 24, 2021.
• The total number of confirmed cases rose to 1,579,906. As many as 1,276,272 patients have recovered, while the death toll has hit 30,773 since the start of the epidemic.
• On March 4, 2021, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said the country was entering the third wave of the COVID-19 epidemic.
• The Health Ministry predicts a surge in new COVID-19 cases by late April.