Costa Rica rolls back reopening moves

The  Government of Costa Rica has suspended phase 3 of its reopening plan scheduled to start on Saturday and has tightened restrictions on the movement of vehicles.

The moves come after detecting 119 new cases of COVID-19, the highest daily figure. since the first case in the country was diagnosed.

“This figure is quite worrying because it represents a risk that we are heading towards an exponential curve,” Health Minister Daniel Salas said at a press conference.

The third phase allowed the opening of churches and places of worship with limitations to the presence of a maximum of 75 people and with a distance of 1.8 meters between each attendee or between social bubbles.

In addition, this stage enabled cinemas, museums, stores and shopping malls to operate on weekends at 50% of their capacity and with distancing between people. These businesses will be able to continue operating during the week as they had been doing with phase 2 of reopening.

The Ministry of Health also decided to suspend until further notice the final of the Clausura Football Tournament

Although soccer is played without an audience, Minister Salas said that the final is suspended to avoid crowds of people at family or social gatherings or parties, and even possible fan celebrations.

The government also decided to tighten the restriction on the movement of vehicles for weekends.

Only vehicles whose license plate ends in an odd number will be able to circulate on Saturdays and on Sundays those that finish in an even number. This circulation will be allowed only to go to supermarkets, health centers, or workplaces.

Costa Rica maintains phase 2 of reopening that allows restaurants, hotels, and national parks to operate at 50% of their capacity, as well as shops, cinemas, theaters, and museums, but only during the week.