ZAGREB, Dec 7, 2020 - Stricter anti-epidemic measures for Varazdin Country that were introduced on November 21 have resulted in the number of new infections stagnating in recent days, the head of the COVID-19 management team for that county, Robert Vugrin, said on Monday.

Vugrin recalled at a press conference that three weeks ago they had been registering 1,500 new infections per week, they had had 172 patients with severe cases of COVID in hospitals, and the percentage of positive coronavirus tests had been 37%.

It was obvious then, he said, that the epidemiological measures in place were not effective, and recommendations made to the national team were either not accepted or were made more lenient.

The 7-day incidence rate in Varazdin County was twice and half times higher than the national one, and the county team had to react and propose stricter measures which entered into force on November 21. The same day, all secondary school and higher education institutions in the county accepted the proposal to switch to online classes.

Vugrin added that they had had to wait at least two weeks for the first results.

During the first week, the number of new infections rose to 2,100. The number of hospitals in patients was also increasing, to 272, while the percentage of positive tests was 44%.

However, he said, two weeks after the stricter measures were introduced, the numbers have started to stagnate.

Vugrin said that the number of new infections in a week was under 2,000, and in the last three days there has not been an increase in the number of patients in hospitals, so the number of patients admitted to and released from hospitals is balanced.

"Over the past three days, we have come from 272 to 262, and today we have 258 patients in hospitals," Vugrin said.

ZAGREB, Dec 7, 2020 - Face masks will be compulsory also for persons who have recovered from COVID-19 since it is still not known how newly-acquired immunity affects transmission, and masks will continue to be compulsory also after vaccination, Croatian Public Health Institute (HZJZ) head Krunoslav Capak said on Monday.

"If the virus settles in a mucous membrane, there is no evidence as to whether immune persons can transmit the disease, and that is why those who have recovered from the infection should wear masks as well. That will remain so also after the vaccination," Capak said at a news conference held by the national COVID-19 response team.

He said that Croatia still had a high incidence rate, with 1,154 infections per 100,000 inhabitants, and that Luxembourg was the only other EU country with a higher incidence.

As for the mortality rate, Croatia is 14th in the EU, with 515 fatalities per one million inhabitants.

The share of positive cases among tested persons in the last 14 days has been 35.6%, with Bulgaria and Poland having higher rates.

In the past 24 hours, there have been 1,886 new infections and 59 fatalities.

A total of 2,629 patients are receiving treatment in hospitals, including 277 who are on ventilators, which is 40 more than on Sunday.

In the past 24 hours, 254 people have been hospitalised and 133 have been released.

The number of active cases stands at 22,124.

The death toll is 2,231.

Currently 52,764 people are self-isolating.

So far 816,241 people have been tested for the novel virus, of whom 5,356 have been tested in the last 24 hours.

Capak said that 136,000 fast antigen tests had been procured, of which 80,000 would be distributed among retirement homes to test 40,000 residents and staff members. The rest will be distributed among emergency medical services for fast diagnostics.

Health Minister Vili Beros said that telemedical centres would be set up in all COVID-19 facilities to establish expert cooperation between all institutions treating COVID-19 patients. The central facility will be Zagreb's Hospital for Infectious Diseases and the goal of the project is to harmonise practice in the application of new information on coronavirus in the treatment of patients.

The head of the national COVID-19 response team, Minister of the Interior Davor Bozinovic, said that in the last 24 hours civil protection inspectors had carried out 2,442 inspections of businesses and public gatherings, issuing 544 warnings and a fine in the amount of HRK 30,000.

"A total of 1,778 checks have been carried out as well, 265 irregularities have been established and 92 reports have been made that will be submitted to the relevant institutions to decide on possible launching of misdemeanor proceedings. A total of 8,743 facilities have been checked and violation of epidemiological restrictions has been found in seven," he said, noting that 63 people had been found to have violated self-isolation rules and that three criminal reports would be filed.

Commenting on an appeal by scientists that was signed over the weekend by half of the government's scientific council, Bozinovic said that some of their recommendations had already been translated into decisions and restrictions introduced by the national COVID-19 response team as well as that measures would continue to be adopted.

"We are having discussions with representatives of the retail sector in order to limit the number of customers who can be in a shop at the same time. As for schools, (Education) Minister (Radovan) Fuchs will discuss possible corrections of initial plans with county heads today. We have already said on several occasions that all decisions are made based on the epidemiological situation, after we establish that the previous ones have either not helped reduce the number of infections or that certain increases have been identified," he said.

Commenting on the scientists' appeal, in which they presented their recommendations to deal with the current health and social crisis in the country, the head of the Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Alemka Markotic, said that opinions were different but that communication was ongoing.

"We have been in touch with our colleagues abroad and have been communicating and exchanging experience with them on a daily basis. It is important to ask questions and seek solutions," she said.

December 7, 2020 - In their regular press conference held this morning, the National Civil Protection Headquarters hinted at new COVID-19 measures for shops in Croatia, which we could see implemented already this week. 

Croatia recorded 1886 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours and the number of active cases in the country today is 22,124. Among them, 2629 patients are in hospital, of which 277 are on respirators. 59 people died.

Since February 25, 2020, when the first case was recorded in Croatia, a total of 152,239 people infected have been recorded to date, of which 2,233 have died. A total of 127,882 people recovered, of which 3,443 in the last 24 hours. There are currently 52,764 people in self-isolation.

To date, a total of 816,241 people have been tested, of which 5,356 in the last 24 hours.

"A week ago we had 1830, and 2 weeks ago 1973 new cases, so we are staying at the same numbers. Our incidence rate is 1154 per 100,000 in the last 14 days, which puts us in 26th place of EU countries, and only Luxembourg has a higher incidence rate. We are 14th in terms of mortality, at 515 per million inhabitants.

On Saturday, 136,000 rapid antigen tests were delivered to us. 80,000 were distributed to homes for the elderly. This will assess the epidemiological situation in the homes," the Headquarters revealed at the beginning of the press conference. 

"In the last 24 hours, inspectors carried out 2,042 inspections of business entities, and public gatherings, issued 544 warnings, and one fine of HRK 30,000. They carried out 1,788 inspections, and 265 irregularities were found. Police officers inspected 8,743 facilities, and seven violations of measures were found. 63 citizens who violated self-isolation measures were identified, three criminal charges will be filed," said Davor Bozinovic.

The Headquarters on further restricting customers in stores

"Talks are being held, they are being run very well, and I'm sure this week will bear fruit. There will certainly be some new decision, and it will be adjusted to the size of the store. The numbers are not specified. It could be one person per 10 m2," the Headquarters said.

About easing measures

"A document on easing measures is being drafted. Our average incidence rate is more than a thousand, some figures mentioned in Europe for easing measures are about 15 to 20 times lower. Our incidence is too high to discuss easing measures. It is being considered which measures could be relaxed and at what figures,"  Capak said.

More on this soon.

Source: Index.hr

Illustration by Little Shiva, see more at littleshiva.com

To read more about coronavirus in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, Dec 7, 2020 - A total of 1,886 new coronavirus cases and 59 infection-related deaths have been confirmed in Croatia in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team said on Monday.

A total of 2,629 patients are receiving treatment in hospitals, including 277 who are on ventilators, which is 40 more than on Sunday.

In the past 24 hours, 254 people have been hospitalised and 133 have been released.

Currently 52,764 people are self-isolating.

So far 816,241 people have been tested for the novel virus, of whom 5,356 have been tested in the last 24 hours.

Since February 25, when the first case of the infection was confirmed in the country, 152,239 people have been infected with the virus, of whom 127,882 have recovered, including 3,443 in the last 24 hours.

The number of active cases stands at 22,124.

ZAGREB, December 6, 2020 - Concerned by the second wave of the pandemic spreading in Croatia and the high death toll, 26 prominent Croatian doctors and scientists from the country and abroad launched a public appeal on Sunday and made recommendations for overcoming the severe public health and social crisis in Croatia.

They said that only with great solidarity and commitment of the entire society can we resist this great challenge.

"We would like to distance ourselves from all the statements that based on incorrect data assured the public in November that the epidemic in Croatia would stagnate or wane and that we did not need stricter measures or that they were not effective. We also distance ourselves from estimates that the virus had weakened in any way, because they are not in line with scientific knowledge," they said in the appeal.

Strictest anti-epidemic measures should be adopted

When it is established that the spread of the infection has gone out of control, it is necessary, it was underscored, to activate preventively and without delay the strictest measures for curbing the epidemic that are politically and economically possible in Croatia. This respects the principle of prevention and prevents the occurence of a high number of infections, instead of having to treat them, with hospitals being overloaded with infected persons.

It is necessary to ensure quality and transparent information on the spread of the infection.

The communication on the pandemic needs to be improved to restore the trust in people managing the crisis, they said.

The signatories of the appeal call for a register, that is a publicly accessible tally, which will count the number of the persons infected with coronavirus, the number of persons in self-isolation, and provide information about hospitalisation numbers and the hospitals giving treatment to those persons. Such tally should give information about available capacities in COVID hospitals, with the exact number of beds for patients who need intensive care treatment.

The signatories say that the daily statistics about the COVID-fatalities in hospitals should also include the data on persons who die from COVID complications outside hospitals.

They call for resolute action in testing and for conducting a higher number of tests in the conditions of the intensive spread of the infection and "the lost control over the epidemic", so that the percentage of positive tests could drop from 30%, as it is currently the case, to below 5%.

The appeal urges the authorities to specify key epidemiological parameters for imposing or lifting of certain anti-epidemic measures so as "to lessen the uncertainties in the society."

The signatories say that in their capacities as experts they do not recommend any decisions which would not be applied to everybody and in this context they criticise any politicisation of measures and their adjustment to some of the social groups.

This (epidemic) is a problem concerning the whole Croatian society and we all are affected, and therefore only solidarity and concerted action of the whole society can help us to manage this huge challenge.

The appeal was sent by researcher Ivica Djikic on behalf of another 25 signatories.

The other signatories are Andreja Ambriovic Ristov, Nenad Ban, Ilija Brizic, Luka Cicicn-Sain, Stipan Jonjic,  doc.dr.sc. Vanda Juranic Lisnic, Petra Klepac, Vanja Klepac-Ceraj, Branko Kolaric, Vladimir Krajinovic, Marko Kutlesa, Pero Lucin, Kresimir Luetic, Igor Mezic, Bojan Polic, Kristijan Ramadan,  Igor Rudan, Marija Santini, Mihaela Skobe, Sasa Srica, Igor Stagljar, Goran Tesovic, Andrej Trampuz, Boris Ujevic and Domagoj Vucic.

ZAGREB, December 6, 2020 - Over the past 24 hours, Croatia has registered 2,899 new cases of the coronavirus infection and 72 related deaths, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Sunday.

The number of active cases in Croatia stands at 23,740. There are 2,543 COVID patients in hospitals, including 264 on ventilators.

Since February 25, when Croatia registered its first case of the infection, a total of 150,353 people have contracted the novel coronavirus, 2,174 of them have died, and 124,439 have recovered, including 3,582 in the last 24 hours.

There are currently 57,295 people in self-isolation.

To date, 810,885 people have been tested for coronavirus, including 9,340 in the last 24 hours.

December 6, 2020 - A plan for easing COVID-19 measures in Croatia should be introduced by the National Civil Protection Headquarters, stating concrete, measurable numerical parameters for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. 

Index.hr reports that according to the announcements of the Chief State Epidemiologist Krunoslav Capak, the National Civil Protection Headquarters should present to the public a document in which, for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, it states concrete, measurable numerical parameters according to which the current strict measures will be eased.

According to the rather strict proposal of the epidemiologist, easing measures would take place in three rounds and will depend on the average number of those infected during the last 14 days and the share of those infected among all those tested.

The first round involves opening restaurants and increasing the number of people allowed at gatherings from 25 to 30. But for that to happen, it is necessary that the 14-day incidence per 100,000 inhabitants does not exceed 300, and that the share of positives among all daily tested is less than ten percent over a period of seven days.

In the second round, cafes would open and 50 people would be allowed to gather. This step can be taken when the 14-day incidence will not exceed 200.

The third round implies permission to increase the occupancy of public transport and gatherings of up to 100 people, but only when the 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 inhabitants does not exceed 100, and the share of positive cases in relation to the tested does not exceed 5 percent. 

Croatia currently has a 14-day incidence rate of 1141.6 COVID-19 cases per 100 000, and a 14-day incidence rate of nineteen COVID-19 deaths per 100,000.

On Saturday, the National Civil Protection Headquarters issued a statement with the latest data on the state of the coronavirus epidemic in Croatia.

"In the last 24 hours, 4,084 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 virus were recorded, and the number of active cases in Croatia today is a total of 24,495.

Among them, 2,514 patients are in hospital, of which 259 are on respirators.

70 people died."

To read more about coronavirus in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, December 5, 2020 -  A total of 4,084 new coronavirus cases and 70 infection-related deaths have been confirmed in Croatia in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team said on Saturday.

The number of active cases currently stands at 24,495. It includes 2,514 patients receiving hospital treatment for COVID-19, of whom 259 are on ventilators.

Since February 25, when the first case of the infection was confirmed in the country, 147,454 people have been infected with the novel virus, of whom 2,102 have died and 120,857 have recovered, including 3,709 in the last 24 hours.

Currently 60,581 people are in self-isolation. A total of 801,545 people have been tested to date, including 10,662 in the last 24 hours.

ZAGREB, December 4, 2020 - A total of 3,955 new coronavirus cases and 68 infection-related deaths have been confirmed in Croatia in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team said on Friday morning.

The number of active cases currently stands at 24,190. It includes 2,427 patients receiving hospital treatment for COVID-19, of whom 262 are on ventilators.

Since February 25, when the first case was confirmed in the country, 143,370 people have been infected with the novel virus, of whom 2,032 have died and 117,148 have recovered, including 3,639 in the last 24 hours.

Currently 59,417 people are in self-isolation. A total of 790,883 people have been tested to date, including 10,626 in the last 24 hours.

December 4, 2020 – Accepting all known knowledge of the Coronavirus risk and the announced vaccines, security and risk experts International SOS have published their latest, annual Travel Risk Map. It says Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors

With the end of the life-halting Coronavirus in sight, thanks to several effective vaccines announced, which country would be best to visit next year? Well, Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors.

It's been a long, difficult year for everyone. It's maybe hard to believe if you live in Croatia and haven't much travelled outside the country, but the residents of Croatia have had it no more difficult than anywhere else. With only around 4 million inhabitants, there's lots of space in Croatia to move around.

Take in comparison Britain's London. That one city (1,572 km²) alone has 9 million people. Croatia has 56,594 km² for less than half the number of people. But, this generous amount of space in which to move around is not the only reason Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors.

On 2 December 2020, Total Croatia News published the annual report based on the Global Terrorism Index, identifying Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 in regards to the absence of terrorist threat and effect. Now, according to the latest annual Travel Risk Map, it has been designated that Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors.

Security and risk experts International SOS's Travel Risk Map for 2021.

The map, created by security and risk experts International SOS , ranks the safety of countries across the globe taking into account medical, security and road risks. It assesses the risk of political violence, social unrest, and the threat of violent and petty crimes – and, most importantly this year, the impact of the pandemic.

For the first two categories, countries are given a rating out of five, while road safety is rated out of four based on the mortality rate per 100,000 people. The places with the highest risk level for security issues are mostly in Africa, with South Sudan, Mali, Yemen, Somalia and the Maiduguri region of Nigeria listed under the most dangerous, along with the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of the Ukraine.

International SOS's map showing the countries with the most and least Covid-19 disruption. Very low-risk countries are marked in white, low risk in grey, medium in blue, high in purple and very high in pink.

Very few countries rank above Croatia in the new safety map, New Zealand, Tanzania and Nicaragua among them, meaning Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors.

For the residents of crowded cities elsewhere in Europe, Australia or the USA who have felt more than restricted in 2020, it might be worth remembering when planning next year's escape that Croatia is one of the most safe countries in 2021 for visitors.