PM Confident COVID Measures Will Bring Numbers Down

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says he is confident that the measures put in place by the Government to contain transmission of the coronavirus (COVID-19), will bring the numbers down.

“The measures that we have put in place… will have a lag effect. So measures that we put in place two weeks ago, we are not going to see the impact, until two to three weeks, because it takes several incubation cycles to see the impact,” he noted.

He noted that the restrictions that will start on the weekend “will have a more immediate effect, because they are stronger, but the real effect will be several weeks in advance”.

“They will get the numbers down, I am confident of that,” Mr. Holness said during the sitting of the House of Representatives on March 23.

The new measures, including expanded weekend curfews beginning March 27, form part of provisions under the Disaster Risk Management Act to curtail the spread of COVID-19 in Jamaica.

The revised weekend hours will begin at midday on Saturday, March 27, continue through to Sunday, March 28, and end at 5:00 a.m. on Monday, March 29.

On Holy Thursday, April 1, the curfew will begin at 8:00 p.m., continue through Good Friday, April 2, and end at 5:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 3.

On April 3, the curfew will begin at midday, and continue through Easter Sunday, April 4, Easter Monday, April 5, and end on 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 6.

On Tuesday, April 6, the measures run from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., ending at 5:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 10.

The expanded curfew will, again, come into effect on Saturday, April 10, at 12:00 noon, continue through Sunday, April 11, and end at 5:00 a.m. on Monday, April 12. The curfew’s 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. timeline will remain in place on all other days.