Croatia reduces self-isolation from 14 to 10 days

Vili Beros (Photo: Marko Lukunic/POOL/PIXSELL)

ZAGREB, Oct 27 (Hina) – In the last 24 hours 1,413 new coronavirus cases have been registered in Croatia and a record 18 persons have died, the national COVID-19 response team said on Tuesday.

The number of active cases is 11,311, including 897 hospitalised patients, of whom 57 are on ventilators.

Since February 25, when the new virus was first registered in Croatia, 38,621 persons have been infected, of whom 470 have died and 26,840 have recovered, including 1,003 in the past 24 hours.

Currently, 27,720 persons are self-isolating.

To date, 457,726 persons have been tested, including 8,185 in the past 24 hours.

Self-isolation reduced from 14 to 10 days

The Croatian Institute of Public Health has released new recommendations under which self-isolation is reduced from 14 to 10 days for persons who have had close contact with a person infected with the coronavirus.

The self-isolation period has been changed under a decision by experts of the Health Ministry’s crisis management team.

The exception is persons who work in care homes for gravely ill elderly persons and disabled persons. For them, quarantine stays 14 days.

80% of those with coronavirus are in active population

Assistant Croatian Institute of Public Health director Marija Bubas said on Tuesday that 80% of those infected with coronavirus were in the active population and that the national COVID response team’s new protection measures were in force as of today.

Speaking on public television, she said public gatherings with more than 50 people were no longer possible, a maximum of 30 people were allowed at weddings and funerals, and 15 at other private gatherings.

Bubas said the exception was theatres, cinemas and religious gatherings.

The measures will be in force the next 14 days, longer if necessary, she added.

Bubas said the new measures encouraged work from home because 80% of those infected were in the active population.

She said masks should be worn at cemeteries in the coming days because many people would visit them on the occasion of All Saints’ Day.