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The vice president of the Junta de Andalucia and Minister of Tourism, Regeneration, Justice and Local Administration, Juan Marín, reported this afternoon on the decisions taken by the regional government’s crisis cabinet to help combat the spread of the coronavirus in the community. In his speech, Marín has reiterated that the Executive’s priority is “to stop contagion with all the means at our disposal and to attend to all infected people.”
He also stressed that it is vitally important “to work quickly and efficiently to control and foresee the economic effects of this situation”. Marín has considered that measures in this matter should be channelled to avoid the disappearance of companies, guaranteeing their access to liquidity, limiting layoffs of workers, supporting companies and self-employed individuals.
“It is our obligation to be one step ahead of what is happening. And that is why we believe it is essential to take measures that cauterize economic bleeding and help the self-employed, businessmen and families to cope with this situation and to plan a complicated but not impossible future”, Marín has stated.
Next, the vice president has listed the economic proposals that the Andalucian body has forwarded to Spain’s national government in the hope they can be adopted urgently:
- Relaxation of the spending rules and deficit target, both due to the increase in spending and the forecast of a fall in income.
- Expansion of the Contingency Fund to apply the measures during the exceptional period of the crisis.
- Tax reduction on basic services such as electricity, water or telecommunications services.
- Deferral of payment of municipal taxes.
- Suspension of the self-employed and Social Security quota while the state of alarm is decreed in those activities not authorized by the Government.
- Prepare a package of measures over the next three months, in order to cover the most vulnerable workers and reduce the impact on demand of the current crisis.
- Ask the European Union (EU) to set up a Health Crisis Committee to co-ordinate all the actions necessary to fight COVID -19.
- Ensure and strengthen the liquidity capacity of companies by granting loans from financial entities.
- Urge banks to activate a specific line of credit for the self-employed and SMEs with the government’s guarantee to avoid layoffs.
- Transfer the need to reinforce the personnel of the Border Inspection Posts for customs control in order to guarantee the issuance of certificates and that exports do not stop.
- Request that the EU be urged to make compliance with the requirements and procedures required by the regulations governing the management of European agricultural and rural development funds more flexible.
- Petition Europe for the extension of deadlines and flexibility of procedures for the execution and development of European funds.
- Plan of the Government of the Nation to guarantee all the supplies of materials necessary to face the measures against COVID19.
- Preparation of a border plan in view of the probable need to have to adopt sanitary control measures at our border posts or even decree their closure.
- Creation of a Social Emergency Fund to be able to attend to social emergency situations.
In the press conference after the Crisis Cabinet, the Minister of Health and Families, Jesús Aguirre, also appeared, who wanted to thank “very warmly the altruistic offer of technology companies, foundations, hospitality, professional schools, organisations, unions, and employers, among many others, to respond to the needs of the population derived from the epidemic.”
Aguirre has also outlined the new measures that his department is going to implement as of today:
- Suspension of all non-oncological surgeries that require an ICU, reserving their availability in view of the possible needs of patients affected by the coronavirus.
- Postponement or suspension of all non-oncological review consultations or diagnostic tests in non-oncological patients depending on the availability of healthcare personnel and the local epidemic situation.
- Decrease, postponement or suspension of Major Ambulatory Surgery Major Ambulatory Surgery (CMA), depending on the availability of healthcare personnel and the local epidemic situation.
- The first visits and tests will be maintained for a first diagnosis of potentially serious or oncological pathologies under study, as well as the monitoring of pregnancies.
- All oncological reviews will be maintained, whether consultations, diagnostic tests and / or treatments.
- Consultations and surgeries for emergencies / deliveries / caesarean sections, as well as activities related to transplants, transfusions, and
- monitoring / treatment of pathologies whose complexity requires hospital support, remain fully operational.
The Public Health Emergency Agency (EPES) and Salud Responde maintains its activity 100%. Automatic chatbot-type attention tools are promoted. - Private ambulance companies are under the coordination of the Public Health Emergency Agency.
- In Primary Care, the activity of emergencies and mobile teams (DCCU, SUAP) are maintained, as well as home warnings, promoting teleconsultation and telemedicine. Circuits will be established through Salud Responde to minimize the need for patients to be present at the Health Centres.
