ZAGREB, 27 Jan 2022 - Interior Minister Davor Božinović, who is at the helm of Croatia's COVID-19 crisis management team, said on Thursday that current COVID protocols would remain effective until the end of February if no changes happened in connection with the coronavirus pandemic.

"In the next few days, the crisis management team will consider the protocols on public gatherings, public transport, shopping, protective mask mandate, and cross-border protocols, and they are likely to remain in force until the end of February," Božinović told the government.

Health Minister Vili Beroš said that the PCR tests conducted in the last 24 hours had detected 10,500 new cases, plus 6,375 cases detected by rapid antigen tests, however, the daily caseload is 3.5% smaller than seven days ago.

There are 2,006 hospitalized patients today, 30 more than yesterday, and 185 are on ventilators, seven fewer than yesterday, he said.

Hospital admission numbers are rising mildly but not in proportion to the number of new infections, he said.

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ZAGREB, 27 Jan 2022 - Zagreb's public transportation company ZET reported on Thursday that currently 390 tram and bus drivers were on sick leave, mainly due to infection with coronavirus or self-isolation and therefore some delays were inevitable.

This city company has 266 trams and 480 buses in its fleet. The company transports more than a million passengers on a daily basis.

ZET says in its response to Hina's inquiry that it can provide electronic notes of excuses for commuting workers and students who happen to be late to work or school due to the current situation in public transport.

The company also asks the users of its services to have an understanding of these developments.

Mayor Tomislav Tomašević admitted today that the sick leaves were the main problem for ZET to provide services in public transport in a timely fashion.

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ZAGREB, 27 Jan 2022 - In the past 24 hours, 10,500 new cases of coronavirus infection have been identified in Croatia, and 59 people have died as a consequence of the infection, the national COVID-19 response team said on Thursday.

There are currently 67,376 active cases in the country, including 2,006 hospitalised COVID patients, of whom 185 are on ventilators.

A total of 44,766 people are self-isolating.

Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 4,175,854 people have been tested, including 20,798 in the past 24 hours.

By 26 January 2022, a total of 5,071,377 doses of a vaccine were, with 56.47% of the total population or 67.21% of the adult population having been vaccinated.

A total of 2,291,578 people have received at least one dose of a vaccine while 2,201,139 have been fully vaccinated, which is 64.71% of the adult population.

The COVID-19 death toll stands at 13,625.

A total of 828,673 people have recovered, including 9,092 in the last 24 hours.

ZAGREB, 26 Jan 2022 - In the past 24 hours, 64 people have died in Croatia as a consequence of coronavirus, and 11,812 new cases have been identified, which means that there are currently 66,027 active cases in the country, the national COVID response team said on Wednesday.

There are currently 1,976 hospitalized COVID patients and 192 of them are on ventilators while 42,446 people are self-isolating.

By Wednesday 26 January, a total of 4,155,056 tests have been conducted, including 22,524 in the past 24 hours.

As of 25 January 2022, a total of 5,061,724 doses of a vaccine had been administered, with 56.44% of the total population or 67.18% of the adult population having been vaccinated.

A total of 2,290,566 people have received at least one dose of a vaccine while 2,199,638 people have been fully vaccinated, which is 64.67% of the adult population.

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January 25, 2022 - During the Croatian Homeland War, there was a very poignant documentary in the UK about Croatia, titled Two Hours From London, addressing the humanitarian and cultural atrocities happening only two hours flying time from London. Without delving into the topic of human tragedy, I'm using this example to highlight that the authors of the documentary wanted to convey a message that London and Croatia were indeed so close. That happened nearly 30 years ago. 

Today, it seems to me that London and Croatia are further away than those two aforementioned hours. I am a British-born Croatian who grew up in Croatia and is now settled back in the UK. As a student, I envisioned flying back and forth between Zagreb and London a lot. Until COVID changed that. Travelling these days between the two destinations requires multiple steps in preparation pre-and post-flight. And that's only if we're lucky that our flight doesn't get cancelled or rescheduled. A passenger between the two destinations must continuously be checking complex rules written on respective governments' web pages in order to be fit-to-fly.

Moreover, travel expenses go beyond the ticket price. To enter Croatia, one is allowed to enter so long as they possess one of the following: proof of vaccination (no older than 365 days), a negative COVID antigen or PCR test result (no older than 48 or 72 hours respectively), or a doctor's certificate of recovery from COVID. Of course, all passengers have to fill in an Enter Croatia form. 

All international arrivals to the UK must adhere to a different set of rules, which also continuously change. Let's just make a point that the rules among England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland are different. As of recently, fully vaccinated travellers to England do not need to take a COVID-19 test prior to arrival. One can choose to take a lateral flow test instead of a PCR test upon arrival to England. Things get a little trickier if the lateral flow test shows positive: one will then need to self-isolate and book a PCR test. Either one of the tests must be booked before the arrival to England. Mind-boggling, doesn't it?

To conclude: there is no longer quick city-hopping between London and Zagreb. Travel requires research, planning, and commitment these days. It is only for the most determined travellers who can afford the newly required travel “luxuries” - my student budget doesn’t exactly allow for those! 

I am now trying to reassure myself with the fact that if I don’t travel I am actually being a responsible citizen on many levels: I do not contribute to the spread of the pandemic internationally nor do I participate in increasing a carbon footprint! However, I do long for the times when travel is easier again so I can go to Croatia to give my grandparents a quick hug and to jump over to Zagreb or Hvar to visit my friends. 

For more updates on international travel news, check out our dedicated travel section.

ZAGREB, 25 Jan 2022 - Croatia has recorded 8,471 new coronavirus cases based on PCR testing and 51 deaths in the last 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team reported on Tuesday.

On the other hand, media said that 8,221 cases confirmed by rapid antigen tests should be added to this number, which would put the total tally of new infections in the last 24 hours at 16,692.

According to the national coronavirus response team, currently there are 58,866 active cases in Croatia. Among them are 1,951 people who are being treated for COVID-19 in hospitals, including 200 placed on ventilators, and 39,228 people are self-isolating.

Since 25 February 2020, when the first case was confirmed in the country, 887,362 people have contracted the novel virus, of whom 13,502 have died and 814,994 have recovered, including 6,627 in the last 24 hours.

To date, 4,132, 532 people have been tested, including 18,320 in the last 24 hours. A total of 5,052,469 vaccine doses have been administered, with 56.42 per cent of the total population, or 67.15 per cent of the adult population, having been vaccinated.

As of Monday, 2,289,548 people have been vaccinated with at least one dose and 2,198,127 of them have been fully vaccinated, which is 64.63 per cent of the adult population.

January 25, 2022 - The Croatian Public Health Institute has announced new isolation rules in Croatia for children, health & social care workers, and asymptomatic persons. 

The Croatian Public Health Institute has published new recommendations on the treatment of patients, contacts and isolation, and self-isolation.

News about self-isolation applies to children, health and social workers, asymptomatic persons, and persons with a mild to moderate clinical picture.

Change in self-isolation for children
Children up to the age of 18 who have been primarily vaccinated and have recovered and received one dose of the vaccine are exempt from isolation, regardless of how much time has passed since vaccination.

Children exempted from isolation should, during the ten days of close contact with an infected person, minimize contact with people over 60 and people with severe chronic diseases and wear a mask on all occasions when immediate contact is impossible to avoid.

It is also recommended that they take a home test five to seven days after close contact with an infected person. In case of symptoms, they should be tested by rapid antigen or PCR test.

Changes in health and social care
Healthcare professionals and employees in the social welfare system whose isolation has been shortened to seven days due to a previous illness or vaccination should take a quick antigen test before returning to work (PCR can be performed if testing capacities allow) and return to work only after a negative result.

A rapid antigen test (BAT) should be performed if a person develops symptoms. In the case of a positive BAT finding, the person undergoes isolation for at least seven days, with the day of onset of symptoms being counted as day zero.

In case of negative BAT findings, it is recommended to repeat BAT after 24-48 hours. In case of repeated negative results, quarantine should be terminated after seven days, with strict adherence to epidemiological measures and continuous wearing of the mask for the next seven days.

Shortened isolation for asymptomatic persons
Isolation was shortened for asymptomatic persons and persons with a mild to moderate clinical picture who were not immunocompromised for seven days and more than four months after primary vaccination or recovery. HZJZ explicitly states that in this case, we are talking about adults.

The document below shows in detail in which cases you can be exempted entirely from quarantine, and when it lasts seven days:

Postupanje s oboljelima, ko... by Jutarnjiredakcija

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January the 25th, 2022 - Dr. Zeljka Karin has appealed to Croatian residents to please make sure they call and actually cancel their PCR test appointments as opposed to simply not showing up, as the situation surrounding testing appointments is becoming a severe issue.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, despite the fact that Omicron is spreading like wildfire and that many professionals are now wondering whether testing for the presence of the novel coronavirus has any purpose anymore, there are still huge problems with supply and demand when it comes to the ''gold standard'' test - the PCR.

The problem, as they explained from the Dr. Andrija Stampar' Institute of Public Health, are the testing appointments which go unused because the people referred simply don't bother to turn up. On average, there are around 200-250 such cases every single day. There is a similar situation going on in Split, as well.

“The problem is really that people don't bother to let us know that they want to cancel their PCR test appointment, meaning that they go for a quick antigen test instead or just stay at home after a positive antigen result and doesn't bother to cancel their PCR appointment. I'm appealing to all those who aren't going to come for their PCR test appointments to please let us know. We're waiting for about two days for this sort of testing,'' said Dr. Zeljka Karin, the director of the Teaching Institute for Public Health of Split-Dalmatia County for HRT.

"Don't be fooled into believing that this is just Omicron and that it will pass with a milder clinical picture. Omicron creates different clinical outcomes, depending on the person. In addition, we still have the Delta strain circulating and it is still common. Six people died two days ago. You need to know that to us, when people are dying daily, it means that the virus is far from harmless. You have to go and get vaccinated and adhere to the epidemiological measures," Dr Zeljka Karin added.

Rapid antigen tests taken at home are also a measure of protection for many, and some pharmacies sell up to 150 of these tests a day, ending their days with empty drawers.

“Rapid antigen tests are currently the most sought after commodity in pharmacies and very often in the afternoon, especially before closing, the tests actually disappear. Towards the end of last week in some pharmacies, we were told that there were no tests, but this morning we talked to suppliers and those who don't have any today will get them over the first days of next week, so I think there will be no major problems there,'' said Ana Soldo, President of the Croatian Chamber of Pharmacists, adding that rapid antigen tests are reliable and of high quality.

“Rapid antigen tests for self-testing at home are about the same accuracy as those used for professional purposes, they're only in a different form and the instructions have been adapted to non-medically trained people that they can test themselves. So, their accuracy is mostly over 97 - 98% ", added Soldo.

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ZAGREB, 24 Jan 2022 - A total of 1,831 new COVID cases have been detected in Croatia in the past 24 hours, and 44 people have died from coronavirus infection, the national COVID response team reported on Monday.

The number of active cases stands at 57,073.

Among them are 1,926 hospitalised patients, of whom 198 are on ventilators.

A total of 42,037 people are self-isolating.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic in Croatia in late February 2020, a total of 878,891 cases of the novel coronavirus have been registered and 13,451 people have died from the infection.

A total of 808,367 people have recovered, including 8,301 in the past 24 hours.

So far 4,114,212 people have been tested for the virus, including 4,315 in the past 24 hours.

The current vaccination rate is 56.40% of the total population, or 67.13% of the adult population.

A total of 2,288,744 people have been vaccinated with at least one dose, and 2,196,911 have been fully vaccinated, which is 64.60% of the adult population.

ZAGREB, 23 Jan 2022 - In the last 24 hours, there have been 7,095 new cases of coronavirus infections in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team reported on Sunday.

There are currently 63,587 active cases. 1,860 of these cases are currently receiving hospital treatment, including 201 patients placed on ventilators.

In the last 24 hours, 36 more patients have died from the infection, raising the death toll to 13,407.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic in Croatia in late February 2020, a total of 877,060 coronavirus cases have been registered. Of these cases, 800,066 have recovered, including 7,569 in the past 24 hours.

Croatia has conducted 4,109,897 coronavirus tests to date, including 14,525 tests in the last 24 hours when rate of positive tests was 49%.

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