ZAGREB, 13 January 2022 – Health Minister Vili Beroš told the cabinet on Thursday that in the past 24 hours, 46.28% of those tested tested positive for the new coronavirus and that areas with low rates immunization had a higher number of hospitalized patients.

The number of hospitalized patients has increased across the coast and KBC Split is under the greatest pressure. Križine Hospital opened another COVID ward and 18 nurses from other institutions were assigned to the hospital, Beroš said.

The situation at Zadar General Hospital has also deteriorated. The highest number of COVID patients are present in Split, Zagreb and Rijeka.

To date, 4.9 million doses of COVID vaccine have been administered and 642,406 people have received an additional injection.

District Nursing Services contacted 1,611 senior citizens this week and 643, or 40%, agreed to be vaccinated.

The fourth and fifth waves overlap

Beroš said testing in health facilities was being stepped up, adding that the only logical modus operandi was for primary health care services to take charge of testing and that a decision on that would be taken today.

“The fourth and fifth waves overlapped, as did the Delta and Omicron variants. The highest pressure in the coming days is expected to be where the inoculation rate is lowest,” did he declare.

Currently, there are 53,051 active cases of the novel coronavirus in Croatia, plus 22,000 citizens self-isolating.

Epidemiologists expect the Omicron variant to infect the majority of the population, but those who have been vaccinated will experience only mild symptoms, while those who have not are more likely to develop severe symptoms and possibly fatal, said the Minister of Health.

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