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Here’s Russia’s plan for facing the coronavirus crisis and preventing new infections, point by point

Source: Meduza
Dmitry Astakhov / Pool / TASS / Scanpix / LETA

On March 16, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced his cabinet’s plans for battling the global pandemic of COVID-19. The proposal is scheduled to be revealed in full on March 18, but media sources like Vedomosti and Kommersant have already uncovered a number of the measures it contains. The federal executive branch has now confirmed some of those steps, particularly those related to business and the economy.

The cabinet’s proposals so far

  • Allocate 300 billion rubles ($4.06 billion as of March 16) to support Russian citizens and the Russian economy;
  • Compensate quarantined citizens for lost income using employer records or doctors’ notes;
  • Set aside funds in the federal budget for unemployment payments;
  • Pay pensions and other benefits in advance;
  • Limit or ban events with more than 1,000 attendees throughout Russia, including international athletic events;
  • Extend school vacations or make school attendance voluntary;
  • Allow delivery options for over-the-counter medicines purchased online;
  • Create a prize fund for standout doctors fighting the virus;
  • Provide for increased coronavirus test production;
  • Create an online alert system for coronavirus updates;
  • Guarantee personal protection funds for individuals;
  • Cancel duties on imported medications and medical supplies;
  • Establish a ‘tax holiday’ for businesses, including tour agencies and airlines;
  • Give small and mid-sized businesses a one-quarter extension on paying their taxes;
  • Temporarily halt audits of small and mid-sized businesses;
  • Give state corporations an extension on paying out dividends;
  • Add the coronavirus to the list of acceptable force majeure circumstances on government contracts;
  • Allocate government credits to regions that meet their economic development goals;
  • Cancel limits on transportation for chain markets in Russian cities;
  • Guarantee systemically vital companies credit for their current work and any recursive tasks.

Text by Alexander Baklanov

Translation by Hilah Kohen