ZAGREB, 27 Nov, 2021 - The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has called, in the context of detection of Omicron, a variant of coronavirus considered a variant of concern, for stepping up primary vaccination, applying a booster dose for people above 40 as well as for stepping up other hygiene measures.

Based on currently available genetic information, the risks of this variant of concern are high, according to preliminary data, the ECDC said on Friday evening.

The B.1.1.529 variant, first detected in southern Africa, is the most divergent variant that has been detected in significant numbers during the pandemic to date, raising serious concerns that it may significantly reduce the effectiveness of vaccines and increase the risk of reinfections.

"Today we are releasing a threat assessment on the emergence of a new Sars-COV-2 variant of concern. There is still considerable uncertainty related to the transmissibility, vaccine effectiveness, risk for reinfections and other properties of this variant. At this stage, based on our experience with previous variants we must be proactive and implement measures as a precaution to buy time until we gain more knowledge. Therefore, I would like to reiterate the three key recommendations from our rapid risk assessment from the 24th of November. Firstly, it is imperative we close the immunisation gap. Secondly, booster doses should be considered for all adult individuals, prioritising persons above 40 years of age. Finally, due to the uncertainties involved with this situation, the timely reinforced implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions is now more important than ever," said ECDC director Andrea Ammon.

The non-pharmaceutical interventions include the appropriate use of face masks, teleworking, operational modifications that reduce crowding on public transport, ensuring adequate ventilation in closed spaces and maintenance of hygiene measures that can be implemented immediately. Setting limits for the number of participants in social and public events during end-of-year celebrations will support physical distancing efforts.

Ammon said countries are again urged to give utmost priority to individuals initially targeted by COVID-19 vaccination programmes that remain unvaccinated or not yet fully vaccinated. Increasing COVID-19 vaccination coverage in all eligible age groups, but particularly in the elderly, in the vulnerable, and healthcare workers should remain the priority for public health authorities.

Public health authorities should identify those with an epidemiological link to cases with the new variant or travel history to areas known to be affected to control or delay the spread of the new variant, she said.

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ZAGREB, 28 Oct 2021 - The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control's (ECDC) latest COVID map shows that Croatia is entirely dark red as are large parts of Eastern Europe.

Dark red signifies a very high risk of COVID-19 incidence.

Last week the capital Zagreb and Pannonian Croatia were dark red on the ECDC map, while Adriatic Croatia and North Croatia were red.

The ECDC estimates COVID-19 risk according to the bigger statistical regions within a country (NUTS 2).

NUTS 2 regions must have a minimum of 800,000 inhabitants and a maximum of three million. There are only four NUTS2 regions in Croatia - Pannonian Croatia, Adriatic Croatia, Northern Croatia, and the City of Zagreb.

ECDC Map for October 28th, 2021

Unlike during the summer months, when the epidemiological situation was worst in the west of the EU, now regions in the east of the EU are mostly marked red or dark red.

All regions of Bulgaria, Romania, and Slovenia are dark red, as are the largest parts of Slovakia and smaller parts of Greece. Hungary and Germany are entirely red, while neighboring Austria is partly red and partly dark red.

The epidemiological situation is better in the Czech Republic, where two regions are orange and the rest are red. The situation is similar in Poland, while all Baltic countries are entirely dark red.

Of the Scandinavian countries, Sweden has the best situation, being entirely orange, while Finland is completely red.

The Benelux countries as well as Ireland are red or dark red, while France is completely orange.

Italy and Spain have the best epidemiological situation, being green and orange, while Portugal is orange.

The ECDC updates its epidemiological map every Thursday.

Red means the number of active cases in the past two weeks has been between 75 and 200 per 100,000 population and that 4% or more of the COVID tests have been positive.

Dark red are those countries where the total number of cases in 14 days has been over 500.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

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ZAGREB, 2 Sept 2021 - The eastern and central parts of Croatia turned red on the updated COVID transmission map produced by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) on Thursday.

The City of Zagreb, coastal counties, and the north of Croatia remain orange.

The red zones in Croatia are thus the counties with the seats in Karlovac, Sisak, Bjelovar, Slavonski Brod, Požaga, Virovitica, Osijek, and Vukovar.

ECDC (September 2, 2021)

The only "green" EU member-states on the updated map are Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Poland.

The ECDC publishes maps every Thursday in support of the EU Council Recommendation on a coordinated approach to the restriction of free movement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which was adopted by EU Member States on 13 October 2020 and amended on 28 January 2021 and 14 June 2021. The maps are based on data reported by EU Member States to the European Surveillance System database by 23:59 every Tuesday.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, including travel, border, and quarantine rules, as well as the locations of vaccination points and testing centers across the country, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

August 26, 2021 - Good news - Croatia remains orange on the latest ECDC corona map on August 26, 2021. 

The latest European Center for Disease Prevention and Control corona map, which has been published around noon in recent weeks, was finally released on Thursday at 3:30 pm. The map revealed that Croatia remains orange, even though many media reports worried the country would turn red with the recent jump in cases. 

Health Minister Vili Beroš said at a press conference today before the map was released that Croatia remained orange and that there were no red zones.

"We contacted our sources in Stockholm and they had some difficulties in publishing the map, and those same sources told us that the whole of Croatia is still orange. So there are no red zones," Beroš said.

In the past 24 hours, 638 new cases were recorded, bringing the number of active cases in Croatia today to 3253, the Headquarters reported.

Among them, 358 patients are in hospital, of which 43 patients are on respirators. Six people died.

To date, a total of 371,623 people have been reported to be infected with the coronavirus, of whom 8,316 have died and 360,054 have recovered (330 in the past 24 hours).

There are currently 7058 people in self-isolation. To date, a total of 2,501,327 people have been tested, of which 10,428 in the last 24 hours.

The ECDC Epidemiological Map for Europe is published each week based on the 14-day incidence and the share of positive tests in the total number tested.

Green on the ECDC map are regions where the 14-day COVID-19 infection rate per 100,000 inhabitants is less than 50, and the share of COVID-19 positives tested is less than four percent, or the 14-day incidence was less than 75 percent, and the share of positives was less than one percent.

Orange means that the incidence of confirmed COVID-19 cases is less than 50, but the share of positives is more than 4 percent, or the 14-day rate is between 75 and 200, and the share of positives among those tested is less than four percent.

Red means a 14-day incidence rate of 75-200, with a COVID-19 positive rate greater than 4 percent and a 14-day incidence rate of 200 to 500, and dark red encompasses areas where the 14-day rate is greater than 500.

ECDC assesses the COVID-19 risk by major statistical regions within the country (NUTS 2). NUTS 2 statistical regions must have a minimum population of 800 thousand and a maximum of three million. There are only four NUTS 2 regions in Croatia - Pannonian Croatia, Adriatic Croatia, Northern Croatia, and the City of Zagreb.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

August 19, 2021 - The latest ECDC corona map shows that the Croatian Adriatic and Zagreb remain orange, while other Croatian counties have now moved to orange. 

On Thursday, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) published a new map with the epidemiological situation in European regions. The Croatian coast remained in orange, as well as the City of Zagreb. However, Zagreb County, Krapina-Zagorje County, Koprivnica-Križevci County, Varaždin County, and Međimurje County are now orange reports Jutarnji List. 

Let us remind you, the government and HZJZ expected that Zagreb could turn red today.

Croatia's Mediterranean competitors in summer tourism generally have a worse epidemiological situation than the Croatian coast and remain mostly in red or dark red. Namely, Spain, Portugal, and Greece remain largely in the red. Western Europe is mostly red, central Europe is mostly orange, while the eastern part of the EU is largely green. Slavonia is completely green.

The ECDC Epidemiological Map for Europe is published each week based on the 14-day incidence and the share of positive tests in the total number tested.

The Croatian coast remained in orange on the latest map, which means that the incidence of confirmed COVID-19 cases is less than 50, but the share of positives is more than 4 percent, or the 14-day rate is between 75 and 200, and the share of positives among those tested is less than four percent.

Green on the ECDC map are regions where the 14-day COVID-19 infection rate per 100,000 inhabitants is less than 50, and the share of COVID-19 positives tested is less than four percent, or the 14-day incidence was less than 75 percent, and the share of positives was less than one percent.

Red means a 14-day incidence rate of 75-200, with a COVID-19 positive rate greater than 4 percent and a 14-day incidence rate of 200 to 500, and dark red encompasses areas where the 14-day rate is greater than 500.

ECDC assesses the COVID-19 risk by major statistical regions within the country (NUTS 2). NUTS 2 statistical regions must have a minimum population of 800 thousand and a maximum of three million. There are only four NUTS 2 regions in Croatia - Pannonian Croatia, Adriatic Croatia, Northern Croatia, and the City of Zagreb.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

August 18, 2021 - Will we see a red Croatian coast on the newest ECDC corona map on Thursday? Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac doesn't think so. 

On Wednesday, Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac said that she did not expect the Croatian coast to change from orange to red in the newest ECDC corona map on Thursday, reports T.portal.hr.

Answering questions from journalists before the Government session, the Minister pointed out that Croatia has much better numbers in tourism this year than last year.

"As of today, we are at 55.3 million overnight stays and 9 million tourist arrivals, which is 1.2 million more arrivals compared to 2020, and compared to 2109, we are at about 60 percent of arrivals and more than 70 percent of overnight stays. But what we are pleased about is the data on consumption, i.e., the value of fiscalized bills, which is about 70 percent compared to 2019, which means that more is spent this year in accommodation, especially in higher categories," said Brnjac.

For July and August, the value of fiscalized bills exceeded the results from the same months in 2019, which means that the tourism sector is stable and able to work the season in such conditions.

There are good announcements for the continuation of the season. Booking is good for both September and October, Brnjac pointed out, and therefore appealed to everyone to pay attention to the epidemiological situation, because, as she emphasized, if we continue with good numbers, we can remain the safest destination in the Mediterranean and try to stay in the orange zone on the ECDC map.

She hopes that good booking will continue. We need to stay responsible and get vaccinated in as many numbers as possible, and we need to look at the whole country, not just the coast, and do everything we can not to have closures like some countries had earlier this season.

She reminded that the Ministry co-finances rapid antigen tests for tourists with more than 20 million kuna, and that they held meetings with all prefects and the sector several times around the season, as well as other institutions, and established more than 350 testing points across the coast so tourists can return to their countries as easily and quickly as possible.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated travel section.

August 5, 2021 - The orange Adriatic Coast on the latest ECDC COVID-19 map is a good indicator for the remainder of the tourist season 

The latest ECDC report on the 14-day Covid-19 incidence rate in EU countries reveals that most of Croatia still remains green and the Adriatic region orange. This means that there are no obstacles to the successful continuation of the tourist season related to the epidemiological picture during the coronavirus pandemic, reports Index.hr.

The ECDC map is advisory, but some Member States rely on it when introducing epidemiological restrictions upon returning to the country.

Of Croatia's tourism competitors, Spain and Italy have a worse picture than last week. Now two more Italian regions in the central part are red and the rest are orange, with the exception of part of northern and southern Italy.

All of Spain is marked in dark red, except for a small part of the coast in the northern part of the country. As for Greece, another region in the central part of the country received has been marked red, while everything else remains the same as last week.

In the past 24 hours, 247 new cases were recorded. The number of active cases in Croatia today is a total of 1,221. Among them, 154 patients are in hospital, of which 14 are on a respirator. Three people died.

Cases by county

City of Zagreb (59), Split-Dalmatia (52), Zadar (40), Dubrovnik-Neretva (20), Zagreb (18), Osijek-Baranja (12), Šibenik-Knin (9), Primorje-Gorski Kotar (7) , Varaždin (7), Istria (6), Koprivnica-Križevci (4), Sisak-Moslavina (4), Karlovac (2), Bjelovar-Bilogora (2), Krapina-Zagorje County (1), Brod-Posavina (1), Požega-Slavonia (1), Vukovar-Srijem (1), Virovitica-Podravina (1), Lika-Senj (0) and Međimurje (0).

Epidemiological indicators as of August 1, 2021
Cumulative 7-day rate for the Republic of Croatia: 27.8 / 100,000

Cumulative 14-day rate for the Republic of Croatia: 52.9 / 100,000

Counties with a cumulative 7-day rate of more than 50 / 100,000 inhabitants: Dubrovnik-Neretva, Split-Dalmatia, Zadar

Counties with a cumulative 14-day rate of more than 100 / 100,000 inhabitants: Dubrovnik-Neretva, Split-Dalmatia, Zadar

Total number of tests in the last week: 41,049, -13.6% compared to last week

Share of positive tests in the total number of tests in the last week: 2.8%

Total number of tests and share of positive tests in the total number of tests: 2,305,717; 15.8%

Number of new cases in intensive care per 100,000 inhabitants in the last week: 0.3 / 100,000

Number of deaths in the last week: 18

Total death rate per 1,000,000 inhabitants: 2,021.4 / 1,000.00

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and choose your preferred language.

ZAGREB, 30 July 2021- The results of the latest sequencing of samples sent on 20 July show that 13% of the samples were infected with the Alpha coronavirus variant while 84% were infected with the Delta variant, meaning that the share of the new variant in Croatia has continued to grow, the COVID-19 response team has said.

Health Minister Vili Beroš said on Friday that according to the latest map of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Croatia remained in the orange zone, recording the smallest daily increase in infections in relation to its competition.

"That fact strengthens our status as the safest tourist destination. That gives us reason for satisfaction, but we must remain cautious," he said.

There are over one million tourists in Croatia, which carries an increased risk of disease transmission, the minister said, calling for compliance with restrictions and for vaccination.

He again called on elderly citizens to get vaccinated, noting that mobile teams had been formed to visit elderly people at home and remind them of the importance of getting vaccinated.

Asked if vaccination would be made obligatory for some sectors, Beroš said that that was not likely at the moment and that what prevailed was the proposal for the smart use of COVID-19 certificates to enable work also for people who had not been vaccinated.

Claim for damages over infection, death during hospital treatment

The minister said that for the time being there were no lawsuits against medical institutions over infection with COVID-19 during hospital treatment but he confirmed that a claim for damages had been filed against the KBC Zagreb hospital by a family who believed that their member had died in hospital infected with COVID-19.

KBC Zagreb officials have said that COVID-19 restrictions and professional rules are complied with at the hospital.

"As for whether lawsuits can be expected, probably yes. I can only repeat that since the start of the pandemic we have acted in line with recommendations by the public health institute for safe work in hospitals," the minister said.

Official: Vaccinated people can transmit infection, should wear masks until vaccination rate is high 

Reporters asked the head of Zagreb's "Dr. Fran Mihaljević" hospital for infectious diseases, Alemka Markotić, to explain research showing that people who have been vaccinated can spread infection with the Delta coronavirus variant equally fast as people who have not been immunised.

She said that this was not unusual as a person who had been vaccinated was protecting themselves but could carry the virus, which was why experts remained cautious and were not saying that those who had been vaccinated should no longer wear masks.

Public Health Institute (HZJZ) head Krunoslav Capak said that epidemiological rules for the 5 August commemoration of Operation Storm had still not been defined and that they would be known on Monday, and as for the Alka tournament in Sinj, he said that a proposal had been made for participants to have COVID-19 certificates and for the number of attendees to be half the envisaged seating capacity.

The COVID-19 response team will hold its next news conference in three weeks' time, on the condition there are no extraordinary situations.

ZAGREB, 22 July 2021 - The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) on Thursday published a new map showing the COVID-19 situation in Europe, according to which Croatia's Adriatic region remains orange, while continental Croatia is in the green zone.

The ECDC publishes an epidemiological map for Europe every week based on the 14-day incidence rate and the test positivity rate.

The new map shows that the whole of Italy is no longer in the green and that three of its regions are in orange.

France has mostly turned orange, with only two of its central regions remaining green. Smaller parts of Sweden and Finland are also orange, as is most of Denmark.

The majority of Greece is orange and a part of it is red. Portugal is also red. Spain is dark red and red, and Cyprus is dark red. Ireland, Luxembourg, and parts of Denmark and the Netherlands have also gone red.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, including travel, border, and quarantine rules, as well as the locations of vaccination points and testing centers across the country, make sure to bookmark our dedicated COVID-19 section and select your preferred language.

July the 21st, 2021 - I think it's safe to say that everyone is sick to the back teeth of colours, traffic light systems, and the words testing and quarantine. The advent of the vaccine was supposed to put a gradual but certain end to all of this, and it leaves one wondering when everything will become normal again. Some things make little sense, and Istria being on the ECDC orange list is just one in a long line.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, numerous reactions, but also fears for the height of the summer tourist season were caused by the decision of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) to mark the Croatian coast with orange on the now almost Godly coronavirus map.

Protests against the criteria according to which ECDC designates high-risk regions were the loudest of all in Istria, from which experts and politicians said that they had a favourable epidemiological situation and that they were victims of other more irresponsible Croatian counties.

Namely, the ECDC divided Croatia into four regions - northern, Pannonian, Adriatic and the City of Zagreb. There was an initiative aimed at the ECDC to change the criteria and apply to individual counties, but it seems that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control isn't even thinking of changing their current practice. The total lack of logic shows obviously when Istria is placed on the ECDC orange list, when, at the time of writing, there were no new cases, much less hospitalisations or deaths.

''Such a decision was agreed at the level of EU member states last year during the German presidency. Observing each unit separately wouldn't be practical, as it would mean that 1,500 regions need to be treated as being in the European Union, while with this methodology there are 330,'' the ECDC told HRT.

It's worth reminding ourselves of the fact that the ECDC monitors the fourteen-day incidence of new cases of coronavirus infection per 100,000 inhabitants and the percentage of positively tested persons, and according to these criteria, the coastal part of Croatia is shown in orange. Continental Croatia is still very much green.

On the map of Europe, most countries are in green, and in the red are Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Malta and Cyprus, as well as parts of Greece, Belgium and Denmark. Apart from the Croatian coast, parts of France, Greece, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Belgium, and the whole of Ireland are also all in orange.

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