Colombia’s Covid-19 Quarantine to Continue through November; Might Complicate Medellin’s Plan to Axe Pico-y-Cedula

Colombia President Ivan Duque announced last night (August 24) that the national Covid-19 quarantine –which includes many current exemptions — will continue through November 30.

The announcement potentially could trip-up Medellin Mayor Daniel Quintero’s new plan to lift “pico y cedula” shopping restrictions starting next week. Area Metropolitana de Valle de Aburra (AMVA, the Medellin metro council of governments) has yet to announce any decision on “pico y cedula” restrictions for September.

Meanwhile, as of September 1, the national quarantine evolves from “a system where we had exceptions to one of specific restrictions,” according to President Duque.

The more-liberal quarantine system arises because “we are in a phase where we have reached a kind of plateau [in Covid-19 cases] with a downward trend,” he said.

“We are no longer going to be governed by exceptions, but by specific restrictions, where restrictions will apply to events and crowds, where we will continue to advance in the opening of sectors with the protocols that have been established by the Ministry of Health,” Duque stated in a nationally televised address.

To combat the pandemic, Colombia has adopted tiered regulations for municipalities with low, medium and high incidences of coronavirus infections.

Under the new scenario, Colombia will have “very clear guidelines on issues such as national air transport, which we want to open much more quickly, but obviously with special observance in those highly affected municipalities,” he said.

In parallel, “we cannot relax, we cannot lower our guard and we all have to assume greater responsibility for self-care in exercising physical distancing” along with mandatory use of masks in public spaces and frequent hand-washing.

The modified scheme also will continue to encourage office workers to work from home in order to reduce cross-contamination risks, he added.

As for possible school reopenings, “very strict protocols will continue to be applied with the mayors and with the [Health] secretariats, so that it is a gradual process, thinking about the health and safety of children.” However, many schools and universities will continue to offer classes via internet rather than in-person.

As for restaurant reopenings, government health protocols will require distance-and-capacity limits and also encourage open-air service, he said.

“We are also advancing with more than 600 municipalities in an opening in many other services such as gyms,  and we will also hope to take steps very clearly so that inter-municipal transport is also guided by those patterns,” he added.