Working hours extended for supermarkets; availability of self tests could expand

Retail stores selling food, such as supermarkets and bakeries, will be able to operate from 7 a.m. to 10.30 p.m as of June 14, according to a joint ministerial decision (JMD) issued on Friday.

The new timetable will apply until June 21, while the number of customers allowed inside remains unchanged.

The same JMD also opens the way for the supply of self testing kits required by hundreds of thousands of private and public sector workers in more distribution points than just pharmacies, by stating that the limit in customer numbers does not apply for those buying the tests in food stores, pharmacies, gas stations, pet shops, laundries, shops selling tobacco/vaporizing products.

Currently the tests are only being handed out in pharmacies, but the Association of Greek Pharmacists (PFS) announced on June 8 that they would stop giving them out free of charge at the end of the month, as a reaction to indications that the government is considering expanding their supply points.

Sources from the Development Ministry said that the JMD does not necessarily mean that tests will be sold in all these stores, but that the government is “keeping its options open” on the issue.

The self-testing program was launched on April 12 to facilitate the safe reopening of economic and social activity after a months-long lockdown in Greece.