The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine considers it necessary to begin enhanced quarantine earlier than the announced date of January 8, subject to a rapid increase in the number of new cases of coronavirus, said Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers Oleh Nemchinov.

"Now we are talking about a figure of 32,000-35,000 patients per day. But we need to understand how many beds of the COVID package were introduced, how many beds were provided with oxygen and how many hospitals were involved in overcoming coronavirus infection," Nemchinov said on the air of the Ukraine 24 TV channel.

He noted that the main indicator for introducing strict quarantine earlier than January 8 may be the incidence of 32,000-35,000 new cases per day.

He also stressed that when assessing the situation, the capacity of beds for patients with COVID-19 will be taken into account.

"In addition to the identified cases, there is also the issue of hospitalized patients. We are constantly increasing the bed fund. The Ministry of Health is working to bring it up to 90,000 if necessary. We are constantly increasing the number of beds with provided oxygen, by the end of the year the task is to reach more than 40,000, and in the future - to 75,000," the minister said.