881 new coronavirus cases, four deaths in Slovenia on Thursday

Ljubljana – The daily count of coronavirus cases dropped to 881 on Thursday, when 5,435 PCR tests were performed for a positivity rate of 16.2%, a further drop compared to the day before. The number of people in hospitals today increased somewhat to 521, including 85 in intensive care, government data show. Four patients died, the same as the day before.

Although 32 were discharged from hospital, the number of patients in hospitals this morning still rose by ten compared to Thursday. One patient fewer than yesterday required intensive care.

Four people died on Thursday, bringing the total death toll to 3,878.

The seven-day average of new cases in Slovenia was down from 784 to 780.

Today’s two-week incidence per 100,000 people stands at 515, and the seven-day incidence is 260.

On Thursday, 21,601 rapid antigen tests were also conducted, which is 5,593 fewer than on Wednesday.

According to the tracker site Covid-19 Sledilnik, there are currently about 10,866 active cases in the country.

“For more than a week now the seven-day average of new infections has been level, which is not a good indicator. The curve can quickly turn upwards, especially as know we have two undesired guests in the house: the British and the South African strains of the virus,” Milan Krek, the head of the National Institute of Public health (NIJZ), told the press today.

He said the number of infections with the British variant had been rising exponentially. “We can see that the epidemiological situation may even worsen under the influence of the British variant in the coming days,” he assessed, noting that this was happening around Europe now.

At the moment, the active population aged between 25 and 55 is currently getting infected with coronavirus in Slovenia. Luckily, fewer older people get sick, so hospitalisations and mortality are down, he said.

He attributes this to the vaccination of older people. The vaccination rate among people over 85 is high, and in the coming weeks the 65-74 age group is to get inoculated, he said.

“We might have the risky groups vaccinated by the end of the month, which is very good and the curves will stabilise,” he said.

Slovenia is to receive 245,296 vaccine shots by the end of March, including 175,695 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, 16,800 of Moderna and 52,800 of AstraZeneca.

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