ATHENS — The two hardest indicators of the coronavirus pandemic's dispersal rate in the country, the numbers of daily deaths and intubations, stabilized in the last week, said Professor Vana Papaevangelou at Friday's live briefing on the latest facts and figures.

Parallel to this development is the gradual reduction of daily new cases of infection, which stood at a daily figure of approximately 1,500 cases throughout last week, while hospitalizations dropped to 320 daily, compared to 450 during last week.

Another factor worth noting, said the member of the health ministry's committee of coronavirus experts, is the drop in the numbers of new cases among the over-65-year-olds.

"All this information points to the fact that the latest round of restrictive measures is beginning to show a positive result," the professor underlined.

Numbers show drop in new daily infections, but not as fast as desired

Even though the number of daily new coronavirus infections is dropping, this is not happening as fast as we want it to happen, Deputy Minister for Civil Protection & Crisis Management Nikos Hardalias pointed out at Friday's live briefing on the latest facts and figures.

Hospitals, too, he observed, are not decongesting as fast either, therefore the endemiological burden nationwide remains high.

This is why Christmas this year will be "different," he noted, and even though a maximum of nine people is allowed to gather at homes over Christmas holidays, the minister urged citizens to try and avoid meeting with elderly family members, "to protect them and ensure they are still with us in coming months."

Pandemic persistent in northern Greece, more lenient in the south

The coronavirus' dispersal is slowing down, said Professor Gkikas Magiorkinis at Friday's live briefing on the pandemic.

The number of active infections is dropping for a third consecutive week, he added, yet the overall epidemiological burden is still high in northern Greece but with signs of a reduction, while in the country’s southern regions the pandemic still exhibits an overall lower, more contained dispersal profile.