ZAGREB, 22 Oct 2021 - In the past 24 hours Croatia has registered 3,258 coronavirus cases and 17 related deaths, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Friday.

Such a high number of new infections was last reported in April.

There are 15,300 active cases, including 997 hospitalised patients, of whom 135 are on ventilators, while 25,359 persons are self-isolating.

Croatia has registered 439,447 coronavirus cases to date as well as 8,985 COVID deaths and 415,162 recoveries, including 1,658 in the past 24 hours, while 3,014,840 persons have been tested for the virus, with 10,309 in the past 24 hours.

To date 46.37% of the population has been vaccinated, including 55.57% of adults, of whom 52.31% fully.

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ZAGREB, 22 Oct 2021 - Five members of the government's Scientific Council on Friday distanced themselves from all statements made by Council member Gordan Lauc about the coronavirus pandemic, notably his latest messages that the pandemic is over and that only elderly people should get vaccinated. 

"We fully distance ourselves from all statements about the pandemic made by Gordan Lauc since the summer of 2020," says the declaration signed by Andreja Ambriović Ristov, Petra Klepac, Branko Kolarić and academicians Nenad Ban and Igor Rudan.

They in particular distanced themselves from Lauc's messages in which he declared the pandemic over or claimed that there are circumstances in which it is better to get infected. Lauc downplays the effectiveness of the epidemiological measures and the need for their application, recommends vaccination only for persons above a certain age and insinuates a connection between the increased mortality rate in Croatia and vaccination, they said.

"Anyone who says that any one of us could agree with Gordan Lauc's statements about the pandemic is not telling the truth," the signatories said.

The five members of the Scientific Council said that "their views on the pandemic are based on the existing knowledge from relevant professions and constantly evolving scientific knowledge, which often requires changes and adjustments of the COVID-19 response strategy, which then need to be explained to the public."

"That is why a responsible interpretation of scientifically accepted knowledge is essential at any time during the pandemic in order to keep the public properly informed and to protect human lives and maintain the economic activity of Croatian citizens as much as possible," the declaration says.

Speaking in an interview with N1 television of his statement that the existing vaccines poorly protect against COVID-19, Lauc said that vaccination is not a mechanism to stop the spread of the virus, but that the vaccine provides excellent protection against serious forms of the virus. He said that he is a scientist whom the government has asked for an opinion, but that he is not a government employee and need not obey the government.

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ZAGREB, 17 Oct, 2021 - Croatia has registered 1,301 new coronavirus cases and 19 COVID-19-related deaths in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team reported on Sunday.

The number of active cases currently stands at 10,284. This includes 903 infected persons who are receiving hospital treatment, of whom 116 are on ventilators. 19,591 people are self-isolating.

Since 25 February 2020, when the first case of coronavirus infection was confirmed in the country, 427,914 people have been registered as having contracted the novel virus, of whom 8,896 have died and 408,734 have recovered, including 1,329 in the last 24 hours.

A total of 2,971,352 people have been tested for coronavirus to date, including 8,054 in the last 24 hours.

So far 3,520,008 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, with 46.08 percent of the total population, or 55.24 percent of adults, having been vaccinated. To date, 1,870,176 people have received at least one dose of a vaccine, of whom 1,754,676 have been fully inoculated, which makes up 51.92 percent of the adult population.

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ZAGREB, 16 Oct, 2021 - The KBC Rijeka hospital has denied reports by several media outlets about the death of a 76-year-old patient, noting that the man was admitted in August and died on 4 September and was not one of the patients who earlier this week got infected with coronavirus at the hospital's gastroenterology ward.

Regarding media reports about a 76-year-old man who died at KBC Rijeka and who had been vaccinated, was negative upon admission and was subsequently diagnosed with COVID-19, the hospital said that that was not the patient who earlier this week was diagnosed with COVID-19.

The patient from the media reports was admitted in August to the hospital's neurology ward for the treatment of the carotid arteries. He was negative for coronavirus upon admission, having been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 but a few days later he was diagnosed with COVID-19 and died on 4 September, the hospital said.

Twenty-four patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 at the KBC Rijeka hospital's gastroenterology ward this past week and they were temporarily relocated to the ward for COVID-19 patients, the hospital said.

They are all stable and the timely application of epidemiological measures has prevented the further spreading of the virus, the hospital stressed.

All staff at the gastroenterology ward were tested for the virus, and the infection was detected in one doctor, two nurses who were not in contact with the infected patients, and one non-medical staff member.

The hospital believes that the infection was brought into the hospital system by a patient during the period of incubation.

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ZAGREB, 16 Oct, 2021 - Commenting on the coronavirus entering the hospital system and claiming the life of a patient in Rijeka, Health Minister Vili Beroš on Saturday warned again about the importance of strong epidemiological rules in the health system, notably hospitals.

"The case of the patient at the KBC Rijeka hospital shows that there is no 100% safety, that the virus cannot be prevented at all times, and that it cannot be detected at a certain stage of the incubation period," the minister said, stressing that the most important thing was that KBC Rijeka staff had acted appropriately and that epidemiologists had prevented the further spreading of the virus.

Beroš noted that other patients were stable and that "there is no danger of the virus further spreading."

According to media reports, a 76-year-old man, admitted to KBC Rijeka for treatment of the carotid arteries, was negative for coronavirus upon admission, having been vaccinated with two doses, however, five days later he was diagnosed with COVID-19 and died.

Beroš once again called on citizens to get vaccinated, noting that of the 15 latest fatalities, 12 had not been vaccinated.

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ZAGREB, 16 Oct, 2021 - In the last 24 hours, Croatia has conducted 9,410 coronavirus tests, and of them every fifth (that is 1,947) has been positive, the national COVID-19 crisis management team reported on Saturday. 

There are currently 10,331 active COVID-19 cases, including 871 hospitalised patients, and of them 114 were placed on ventilators on Saturday morning,  or 13% of the COVID hospitalisations in the country.

In the last 24 hours, 15 people infected with the novel virus have died, raising the COVID-related death to 8,877. 

Since the first registered case of the infection with the novel virus in Croatia on 25 February 2020, as many as 2,963,298 tests have been performed, and 426,613 have turned out to be positive.

To date, 407,405 persons have recovered from this disease, including 1,412 recoveries in the last 24 hours.

Croatia's share of the vaccinated adults stands now at 55.19%.

Over 1.86 million have received at least one shot, and 1,752,644 have fully been inoculated.

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ZAGREB, 15 Oct 2021 - Croatia has registered 1,758 new coronavirus cases and 15 COVID-19-related deaths in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team reported on Friday.

The number of active cases currently stands at 9,811. This includes 873 infected persons who are receiving hospital treatment, of whom 118 are placed on ventilators. 19,501 people are self-isolating.

Since 25 February 2020, when the first case of coronavirus infection was confirmed in the country, 424,666 people have been registered as having contracted the novel virus, of whom 8,862 have died and 405,993 have recovered, including 1,552 in the last 24 hours.

A total of 2,953,888 people have been tested for coronavirus to date, including 9,228 in the last 24 hours.

As of Thursday, 3,510,623 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, with 45.97 percent of the total population, or 55.12 percent of adults, having been vaccinated. To date, 1,865,665 people have received at least one dose of a vaccine, of whom 1,749,058 have been fully inoculated, which makes up 51.76 percent of the adult population.

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October 12, 2021 - People can receive the third Covid shot in Croatia based on the published recommendations by the Croatian Institute of Public Health. 

The Croatian Institute of Public Health (HZJZ) has published recommendations for the third Covid-19 vaccine dose in immunocompromised persons and re-vaccination with the third dose of persons who have completed primary vaccination, which is possible in Croatia as of today, reports Index.hr.

Administering the third vaccine dose is recommended for certain categories of immunocompromised individuals, as an additional dose to those who are presumed not to have developed a complete or satisfactory immune response to the vaccine. The time when the third dose is needed is decided by the specialist doctor who treats the person.

Unlike an additional dose, a booster dose is administered with a longer time lag than the primary vaccination series to prolong the duration of protection against the virus.

Therefore, revaccination is recommended for residents of homes for the elderly and infirm and adults with disabilities, workers employed by accommodation providers for the elderly and infirm and adults with disabilities, and other accommodation providers, and health professionals who directly care for patients, health care workers and all persons aged 65 and over.

The third dose is also recommended for all persons aged 18 and over who share a household with immunocompromised and extremely sensitive persons, and for all persons aged 18 and over who suffer from chronic diseases that increase the risk of more severe forms of Covid-19.

Taking into account the specifics of health as well as family and work environment that may be important in deciding on vaccination, all persons aged 18 and over who have passed at least 6 months after completing primary vaccination can be vaccinated after consulting a doctor.

People who recovered from Covid-19 and started and finished primary vaccination after recovering do not need a third dose.

Comirnaty (Pfizer) is recommended for revaccination at least six months after the end of the primary vaccination, as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has authorized the vaccine dose for this vaccine only.

"For people who have been primarily vaccinated with other vaccines, vaccination with Comirnaty goes beyond the approved indications, i.e., it is an off-label use that we consider justified based on available medical knowledge. An evaluation of the third dose of Spikevax is expected soon (Moderna), and we will revise these recommendations in accordance with the assessment," said HZJZ. 

For revaccination and administration of the third dose, citizens can use all available vaccination channels: unannounced vaccination points, selected family doctor, or on-site vaccination (homes for the elderly, health care facilities, etc.).

HZJZ notes that the priority is to be vaccinated with two doses (or once in the case of the Janssen vaccine) for those who have not yet been vaccinated.

"We recommend revaccination against COVID-19 to the following categories of the population:

a. users of homes for the elderly and infirm and adults with disabilities

b. workers employed by accommodation providers for the elderly and infirm and adults with disabilities and by other accommodation providers

c. healthcare professionals who directly care for patients: any level of healthcare

d. all persons aged 65 and over,

e. all persons aged 18 and over who share a household with immunocompromised and highly sensitive persons,

f. all persons aged 18 and over who suffer from chronic diseases which increase the risk of more severe forms of COVID-19 disease," the recommendation reads.

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ZAGREB, 10 Oct, 2021 - In the past 24 hours 908 coronavirus cases and nine related deaths have been registered in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Sunday.

There are 9,423 active cases, including 839 hospitalised patients, 124 of whom are on ventilators, and 18,408 persons are self-isolating.

To date 2,913,176 persons have been tested for the virus, including 8,894 in the past 24 hours.

To date Croatia has registered 417,858 coronavirus cases, 8,722 related deaths and 399,663 recoveries, including 1,250 in the past 24 hours.

To date 45.65% of the population has been vaccinated against COVID, including 54.74% of adults, 51.36% of whom have completed vaccination.

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ZAGREB, 8 Oct 2021 - In the past 24 hours 1,691 coronavirus cases and 22 deaths have been registered in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Friday.

There are 9,515 active cases and 805 hospitalised COVID patients, including 121 on ventilators, while 17,452 persons are self-isolating.

In the past 24 hours 9,816 persons have been tested for the virus.

To date Croatia has registered 415,356 coronavirus cases, 8,752 COVID deaths and 397,089 recoveries, including 1,453 in the past 24 hours.

Also, 45.51% of the population has been vaccinated, including 54.58% of adults, of whom 51.19% fully.

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