Montevideo, Dec 2 (UNI) Uruguay plans to start vaccinations against the coronavirus disease in April 2021, President Luis Lacalle Pou has said, adding that the vaccination will not be obligatory.

“We have a reasonable date which is the beginning of the second quarter of the next year, sometime in April… the vaccination horizon is on that date,” the president said at a press conference on Tuesday.

Lacalle Pou added that the vaccination plan covers the first 700,000 doses and then another 500,000 doses.

At the press conference, the president also announced a series of new restrictive measures due to the surge in the new COVID-19 positive cases in the country.

“The remote work in all public offices, the cancellation of all indoor sports including basketball, the closure of bars and restaurants will be at 00:00 [06:00 GMT] and fines will be applied to workplaces that do not comply with protocols,” the president said.

The government will evaluate the effectiveness of these measures from December 2 to 18 and may announce new restrictive steps.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Uruguay has registered 6,024 positive cases, including 4,483 patients who have recovered and 78 people who have died.