On the Coordination Council's decision, "Green Passport only" admission will apply from December 1 to the following: eateries, restaurants, cafes, and bars (both outdoor and indoor), cinemas, theaters, opera houses, museums, concert halls, entertainment centers, casinos and gambling sites, spa centers, fitness clubs, hotels, and aerial lifts in winter resorts. These requirements also applies to the guests of the listed facilities. As for entertainment centers for children, Green Passports are mandatory for citizens aged over 18.
According to Deputy Health Minister Tamar Gabunia, those citizens who recovered from COVID-19 will receive permanent Green Status.
Unlike Tamar Gabunia, Amiran Gamkrelidze, head of NCDC, directly stated that he had a different position on the issue.
“Green status will be given to the following groups: fully vaccinated individuals, those who have recovered from coronavirus, citiznes with negative PCR test certificates conducted within the last 72 hours, people with negative rapid test results conducted within the last 24 hours. The position of the NCDC is rather different. The Coordinating Council took the decision for temporarily. The Coordinating Council is an intersectoral body, which comprises of 25 people, the decision is adopted by consensus. It does not mean that if NCDC says something, it will definitely be adopted.
Deputy Health Minister Tamar Gabunia declares, that the main thing at this stage is to introduce "Green Passport" as a mechanism with a more positive attitude and less discomfort for the population.
“As for the number of re-infected, naturally, we also looked at this. By September, there were approximately 5,000 people in our entire cohort who have re-contracted the infection. Thus, based on our two years of experience, the rate of reinfection is not high yet”, - Gabunia said.
“Covid-19 passports are introduced all over the world. I came up with a 'green passport' plan, which presented more complex options, and I adapted to the current reality and the mood of the population in order to have a balanced approach, and I think we have a fairly balanced approach”, - Irakli Gharibashvili said.
As of November 24, 984,539 people, or 34.5% of the adult population, have been fully vaccinated in Georgia. According to the National Vaccination Plan, the target is to vaccinate 60% of citizens.
