Isolation conditions must be strictly followed: Minister

ISTANBUL

Turkey’s health minister has reminded citizens once again that isolation conditions must be strictly followed, as authorities fight against the spread of the pandemic with the social distancing rules imposed and vaccination campaigns implemented.

“We would like to remind you that people who have tested positive, regardless of their complaints, must strictly comply with the isolation conditions in order not to allow the spread of the disease,” Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.

Noting that the number of active cases in Turkey is around 450,000 as of Nov. 9, the minister said that success in the fight against the pandemic depends on shared responsibility.

Speaking about the latest situation on Turkey’s vaccination drive, Koca stated that Turkey does not impose an obligation on its citizens for the COVID-19 vaccine but the conditions reveal that the “vaccine should already be seen as an obligation.”

“The will of the people should be in the public interest. A sense of responsibility requires vaccination,” he said, noting the need not to evade responsibility during the pandemic.

The country’s fight against the coronavirus gained momentum over the summer when the country’s vaccination program was opened up to everyone at the age of 15 and above. Still, vaccine hesitancy deals a blow to efforts to achieve mass immunity by inoculation.

The rate is at and above 75 percent in most provinces, however, the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa is the only province in the “red category” in the vaccination map due to a lower jab rate, at 54 percent, despite calls made by the local authorities.

The color-coded vaccination map assigns colors to provinces based on vaccination rates, with red indicating the highest risk and blue meaning the lowest risk in terms of infections.