STA, 9 November 2021 - Slovenia's medical organisations have made an urgent appeal to citizens to do their best to avoid requiring urgent medical assistance over the next month or two, warning the healthcare system is about to collapse. 

The pressure of Covid patients on the health system is so huge, patients at the moment can no longer get some of the services that had been available before, heard the press conference following a meeting of medical organisations on Tuesday.

Over the next week they expect the situation to aggravate so that doctors at critical points in the system would be simultaneously attending to two patients in need of a ventilator, as there would not be enough staff that can help such patients or suitable beds, said Igor Dovnik, the head of the Association of Private Doctors and Dentists.

Bojana Beović, the head of the Medical Chamber, could not rule out the possibility that doctors might need to choose who got intensive aid, a situation that she said was one of the hardest that could happen to a doctor.

She said staff shortages were acute. All the staff was mobilised at the moment to be deployed where is urgently needed, in particular intensive care units, which need highly qualified staff. However, despite an all-out effort to ensure suitable level of care, the capacities are already stretched.

"This is an alarming situation that we can cope with through maximum solidarity of all health workers on the one hand and solidarity of people on the other who will understand the situation and contribute to making the situation manageable in some way," said Beović.

"Life is open, there are traffic accidents, accidents at work, other infections," she said, warning the workload is bigger than a year ago when the country was shut down. "If we want a normal life, keep schools, the economy open, we must be aware there's a price to this. We must do all activities in a way not to make that price too high."

The organisations, including the trade union of doctors and dentists, called on everyone to do their bit to avoid needing medical aid over the next month or two, including by avoiding situations or activities that could result in injury such as sports or reckless driving, or risking getting any infection.

Dovnik urged everyone who have not yet got vaccinated against Covid-19 to do so, and recommended getting a flu jab as well. "I don't think we could be so lucky to avoid flu two years in a row," he said.

STA, 9 November 2021 - Health Ministry State Secretary Franc Vindišar has warned that, as Slovenian hospitals continue to fill up with Covid-19 patients, the peak occupancy rate of intensive care units is projected for 24 November, when more than 250 ICU beds are expected to be occupied.

Vindišar told the government's press briefing on Tuesday that the daily average of newly admitted Covid-patients in the last week was almost 100, while the average for persons discharged from hospital was 50, and the daily average of deaths at 12.

This week, there are 240 more Covid-19 patients in hospitals than last week, the state secretary said, adding that the epidemiological situation was very serious, and that hospitals were being stretched beyond their normal capacity.

Vindišar noted the predictive model of the Jožef Stefan Institute, under which the peak occupancy rate of intensive care units is projected for on 24 November, with over 250 ICU beds occupied.

Today, the total capacity was increased by two beds to 213, he said, adding that an additional 750 standard beds were available for Covid-19 patients.

More than 190 patients were currently treated in intensive care units, and an additional 681 patients are in standard care.

According to Vindišar, up to 290 beds for ICU patients could be secured in Slovenia. Some capacity needs to be reserved for non-Covid patients, as many other diseases and conditions require intensive therapy, he added.

Vindišar noted that standards for patients in ICUs, who are fully dependent on medical care 24/7, had to be lowered. Before the epidemic, it was close to four nurses per patient a day, and today it was lowered to almost below two.

Economy Ministry State Secretary Simon Zajc meanwhile said that the government decree that brought stricter supervision of the recovered-vaccinated-tested (PCT) rule, effective as of Monday, "prevents full closure of the country".

He said that the aim of the decree was not limiting economic activity, but supervising socialisation, adding that the government had followed the examples of Austria and Italy, where anti-epidemic measures are also being beefed up.

Damir Orehovec, the state secretary at the Education Ministry, spoke about the mandatory self-testing of primary and secondary school students in school three times a week, which is expected to enter into force next Monday.

Orehovec said that this was an alternative to remote learning, and added that more detail about the measure would be presented to head teachers at a meeting on Wednesday as there were many questions from parents and school managements.

"The most vulnerable groups enter the school and kindergarten space and we need to make sure that both children and employees are provided with safe space where they can learn and work," Orehovec said.

He noted that those who meet the recovered-vaccinated (PC) rule would be exempt from the mandatory self-testing in school.

As of 15 November, primary and secondary school students will be eligible for 15 free rapid antigen tests a month, which they will be able to get in pharmacies. Schools will also have some backup test in case students forget to being theirs.

Get all the latest data, in a nice series of maps and charts, here

STA, 8 November 2021 - A number of new Covid restrictions came into effect today to help contain the unrelenting outbreak of infections. A ban on gatherings and a curfew on bars and restaurants were reimposed as night clubs are being shut while the Covid pass mandate is being expanded to those aged 12 and older. Cloth masks are no longer deemed suitable.

In line with the decisions taken by the government in Friday and released in the Official Gazette on Saturday, the recovered-vaccinated-tested (PCT) rule, where required, is being extended to cover everyone over the age of 12, up from 15.

Along with the PCT certificate, the person will also need to show a valid ID document to prove their identity, a change introduced due to rampant fraud. For those who have not been fully vaccinated or reconvalescent, a rapid test is valid for 48 hours and PCR test for 72 hours.

Gatherings are temporarily banned, except for close family members and members of the same household. The exception to the rule is organised public indoor and outdoor events provided the participants meet the PCT rule and maintain a distance of at least 1.5 metres from each other.

Surgical or FFP2 face masks are mandatory inside all public indoor spaces and in outdoor public spaces when physical distance of at least 1.5 metre cannot be maintained. The masks are also mandatory inside vehicles except when carrying only same household members. Children under six are not required to wear masks.

Grocery stores and pharmacies or shops selling toiletries and beauty products or medical equipment, where the Covid certificate is not mandatory, have to allow at least 10 square metres per customer.

Bars, cafes and eateries can now only serve customers at tables between 5am and 10pm provided that they have a valid Covid pass. Night clubs are being shut down until further notice.

Public cultural events are only permitted in indoor public venues with fixed seats. Apart from having to meet the Covid pass mandate and carrying a surgical or FFP2 mask, the visitors are required to be seated one seat apart from each other. The same applies to sports events, which can be held outdoors though.

It is prohibited to serve or consume food or drinks at public cultural or sporting events.

The Covid pass mandate, masks and social distancing of at least 1.5 metres are also mandatory for religious gatherings.

Except for masks for youngest school children, changes do not affect education institutions for the time being. However, from 15 November self-testing will be mandatory three times a week for all pupils and students who are not vaccinated or reconvalescent. They will self-test at school and no longer at home.

The costs of rapid antigen tests and self-tests required at workplace or schools will be covered from the state budget. The price covered by the budget is set at EUR 7, VAT excluded, per rapid antigen test and EUR 2.5 per self-test.

Several pharmacies told the STA today that they were running out of stocks of self-test kits, attributing the increased demand to the announced mandatory self-testing by pupils and students.

They nevertheless said that they were looking to secure undisrupted supply of self-test kits and that stocks would be increased given the high demand as extra stocks would be ordered from suppliers.

Pharmacies also see an increased demand for surgical or FFP2 face masks as wearing of this type of mask is becoming mandatory, although they say that stocks had been expanded and there are no shortages in the market.

State administration employees in workstations will be ordered to work from home where that is possible and the same is being recommended for public employees at public agencies, institutions and corporations and local communities, while the government is also urging other employers to organise work from home.

The latest restrictions are being imposed as the 7-day rolling average of daily cases has increased to almost 2,860 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 residents has risen to over 1,700 with almost 800 Covid patients treated in hospitals.

With hospital capacities expected to become stretched further, the Health Ministry has ordered a mobilisation of the whole health system, including public and private providers, whose activities will be coordinated on a daily basis.

STA, 8 November 2021 - Commenting on the latest measures taken by the government to contain the Covid outbreak, the newspaper Večer finds the government no longer has any strategy but has opted for natural immunisation to run its course.

Noting that contrary to initial announcements, PM Janez Janša and fellow coalition leaders failed to appear at the press conference to present the measures on Friday, the paper says that economic interests prevailed over saving lives.

"A renewed declaration of epidemic and lockdown would activate hazard bonuses and demands for new aid packages. Despite the June ruling of the Constitutional Court, the communicable diseases act has still not been changed and remains unconstitutional," writes the paper, wondering what that means for new measures.

"The Janša government has opted for natural immunisation. Immunologist Ihan has even described it as reckless [...] There has not been the will or the skill for anything more. This is being emphasized by the fact that neither the PM nor Tonin or Počivalšek addressed the people on Friday. Hiding behind the health minister's broken backbone and politically (self)instrumentalised experts is cowardly and is an admission that the pilots are pulling the aircraft's control wheel each in their own direction [...]

"Given the brutal trends - Slovenia became the global leader by the weekly average of new infections per million last week - a statesman's like appearance would be the minimum of what is called for. There is no strategy anymore if ever there was one," the paper says under the headline (Ir)responsible, appealing to people to "pull the brake" if the government is incapable of doing that.

STA, 7 November 2021 - The Education Ministry has announced that self-testing for primary and secondary school children and youths will be mandatory starting from 15 November after initially announcing that it would continue to be voluntary. Self-testing will be performed on school premises three times a week.

The changes to self-testing in educational institutions are part of new Covid restrictions agreed by the government on Friday. Except for self-testing applying to schools, new rules will kick in on Monday.

Self-testing will be mandatory for all primary and secondary school students as well as for university students except for those who have been vaccinated against or have recovered from Covid.

Children and youth involved in educational institutions for children and youth with special needs will also need to self test, as will those involved in after-school sports activities at schools.

Until 15 November primary and secondary school children will continue to self test at home twice a week and higher education students at their schools.

From 15 November, primary, secondary and higher education students will be eligible for 15 rapid antigen self tests a month, which they will be able to pick up at a pharmacy with their health insurance card.

The Association of Head Teachers has met the new rules with dismay and apprehension. Its chairman Gregor Pečan predicted objections by the parents who oppose Covid rules as it is.

Speaking to the STA, Pečan expressed concern that the youngest pupils would need assistance with self-testing from school staff.

Offering the example of Austria, he said Slovenia was moving to mandatory self-testing in school setting without even having data how many pupils in fact self-tested at home.

"The head teachers have the feeling we are being pushed to the front lines again [...] being left to our own resources as parents take it out on us."

What makes the situation even more awkward is that most of the Covid measures have turned out to be unlawful or unconstitutional, he noted.

They will try their best to put all the measures imposed in practice despite staff shortages. "However, imposing such measures without a rethink, consultations, is unserious, to put it mildly," said Pečan.

See all the latest data on Slovenia and COVID here

STA, 6 November 2021 - Amidst surging infections, the government decided late on Friday evening to tighten Covid restrictions instead of imposing another lockdown. From Monday, the Covid pass mandate is expanded, opening hours of bars and restaurants restricted, gatherings banned and only surgical or FFP2 masks allowed. Students will soon get tested more often.

After a six-hour government session, Health Minister Janez Poklukar presented at a press conference the new restrictions to contain the rapid spread of infections, which seems to be getting out of control this week.

Starting on Monday, the Covid pass will have to be produced by persons older than 12. So far, the rule has had to be observed by individuals aged above 15.

The recovered-vaccinated-tested (PCT) rule will be observed as long as the person produces a valid ID and Covid pass, Poklukar said.

Night clubs will be temporarily closed and gatherings banned, except for family gatherings. Cafes, restaurants and bars will be allowed to operate only between 5am and 10pm, and only table service is permitted to ensure physical distancing.

Responding to this, Blaž Cvar, head of the Hospitality and Tourism Section of the Chamber of Craft and Small Business (OZS), told the STA on Saturday that he missed measures to cover the damage that would be suffered by establishments as a result.

It is also hard for hospitality providers to take on the role of a "repressive supervisor", he said in reference to Covid pass checks that will now also involve ID checks, adding that there had been no legislative changes to allow them to request IDs in line with the General Data Protection Regulation.

Shops will be restricted to accepting one customer per at least 10 square metres, and required to put up signs telling customers how many of them are allowed to be in the shop at the same time.

Responding to the stricter measures, Mariča Lah, the head of the Chamber of Commerce (TZS), told the STA on Saturday that re-introduction of a limited number of customers was not a major issue for retailers, as they had had experience with this.

"Any measure that can be implemented at not too big of a cost is better than closing shops or shutting down the economy," she said, adding that the measure in question had proved to be quite effective in the past.

Cloth face masks will no longer be enough whenever mask-wearing is a must, as only surgical or FFP2 masks will be accepted as adequate, Poklukar said yesterday.

Schools will remain open, he noted, however the frequency of self-testing among primary and secondary school students will be increased to three times per week from 15 November.

The students will get tested in schools and not at home as has been the case so far. Each one of them will be entitled to 15 rapid tests per month.

Self-testing will remain voluntary for primary and secondary school students and obligatory for university students, who will be required to get tested three times per week as well.

Students who have been vaccinated will not be urged to get tested, however if they get signs of infection, they should contact their GP.

All students and school staff will have to wear protective masks indoors, either surgical or FFP2 masks.

From next Monday, restrictions will be also stepped up at cultural and sports events. The organisers will have to ensure physical distancing by leaving one seat empty in between spectators, who are still required to wear a mask and observe the PCT rule.

When it comes to religious services, the rules are the same with participants required to heed a 1.5 metre physical distancing.

The cost of rapid testing will once more be covered by the state, said Poklukar, adding that the price per test had been reduced from a maximum of 12 euro to 7 euro.

In public administration, teleworking will be put in place as much as possible. The minister also recommended this regime to all the other organisations.

He highlighted that given the poor epidemiological situation, public life restrictions were a must. "The coming weeks will be difficult, healthcare will be put to the test. The only efficient measure is vaccination, as the adopted measures only alleviate the pressure on hospitals," he said.

The situation in healthcare is alarming, he reiterated, adding that the measures were considered, including by experts, to help improve the situation quickly. At the same time, the steps are acceptable "given the state of mind in society".

Poklukar confirmed that the option of a complete lockdown had been another proposal on the table during the session.

He also commented on reports that Slovenia will soon have to send its Covid patients abroad due to limited hospital capacities, saying that the ministry had been in contact with the neighbouring countries and cooperating with them due to the seriousness of the situation.

He has contacted community health centres which have seen long queues forming outside their vaccination sites in recent days, and received assurances that the issue will be tackled, he said, urging people to get a jab.

Milan Krek, the head of the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ), said that the NIJZ supplies currently totalled more than 700,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines, adding that additional doses were on the way and there were no supply bottlenecks.

On Friday, the government also green-lit the agreement reached with the nursing trade unions, which means higher wages for nurses, said Poklukar. The results of the negotiations will be presented together at the signing of the agreement, he added.

STA, 5 November 2021 - Long queues have been forming outside vaccination centres since the government gave the go-ahead to those who have been fully vaccinated using vector-based vaccines [such as  Janssen / Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V or Convidecia] to get a booster dose at least two months after their latest jab. Some places have been faced with temporary vaccine shortages.

The Ajdovščina Health Centre in the south-west of the country told the STA on Friday that it had run out of the Pfizer vaccine. The centre's director Egon Stopar said that this week the booster dose had been administered to more people than in entire October.

Due to vaccine storage issues, the centre keeps its supplies at a certain level, so it was able to vaccinate only those people today who had an appointment. Those without a prior appointment will be able to get a jab on Monday, Stopar added.

Petra Kokoravec, the director of the Nova Gorica Community Health Centre in western Slovenia, told the STA that the vaccination demand was "enormous". Amidst the increased interest in getting a shot, the centre has so far not experienced any vaccine shortages.

UKC Maribor, the second largest medical centre in the country, has also recorded a growing demand for Covid-19 vaccines this week.

In light of this, the hospital's vaccination site will again be open over the weekends as well, from 8am to 4pm. Only the Pfizer vaccine is available and those interested are not required to book a vaccination slot, said UKC Maribor, adding that there was enough vaccines.

The increased demand has also been seen by the Brežice Health Centre in the east, which told the STA that people were mainly interested in booster doses.

There has been a slight increase in those wanting to get the first dose as well, said the centre's director Dražen Levojević, adding that there were no vaccine shortages.

All Covid vaccination sites across Slovenia keep updated vaccination schedules on their websites.

STA, 3 November 2021 - The business daily Finance says a new lockdown would mark a defeat for the Janša government as it argued in Wednesday's commentary that Slovenia should have been well past the point where lockdowns are needed given that vaccines are now abundant and that much more about the virus is now known.

The paper dismisses the argument that hospitals are filling up and comparisons with the Italian city of Bergamo, as it notes that in October 2021, the health system should be capable of withstanding corona shocks or at least of dealing with more cases than a year ago.

"Forgive me for over-generalising a little bit, but the government has spent a billion euro over the past year for hazard pay in the public sector. It threw the money around everywhere, many if not most of the recipients were never even near hospitals.

"A billion euros is a lot of money and with prudent management a lot could have been done. Should nurses have been better compensated to they don't run away to other jobs?"

Turning to vaccination, the commentator says that some simply do not want to get vaccinated, other associate vaccines with aversion to the Janša government, and some have decided to believe conspiracy theories.

"True, everyone is individually responsible for vaccination. But nearly a year since vaccination started, we must ask this: has the Janez Janša government, with its expert group and vaccination coordinator, done enough to popularise vaccination. Would it have made sense to have a somewhat more positive approach to vaccination?"

The bottom line, according to the paper, is that it is unclear what the purpose of a new lockdown would be given the experience with last year's lockdown, which was supposed to last seven days but ended up dragging into spring.

"The impression is that people will respect rules set by the Janez Janša government even less than they did last year, and the fear that kept people at home in March 2020 is long gone. And mind you, if there is a lockdown, it will apply to everyone. This is far from being a good selling point for vaccines," the paper concludes in New Lockdown = New Defeat for the Janša Government [Novi lockdown bi bil novi poraz Janševe vlade].

STA, 2 November 2021 - The national advisory committee on immunisation has proposed that, given the current epidemiological situation, those who have been vaccinated with viral vector vaccines [such as  Janssen / Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V or Convidecia] receive a booster shot after at least two months since being fully immunised. The list of other groups for whom a booster shot is recommended has been extended.

The committee at the National Institute of Public Health led by Bojana Beović decided at a meeting last Wednesday to recommend a booster shot for family members of persons with a weak immune system and patients with chronic diseases who are particularly vulnerable, persons who are particularly exposed to the virus at work and those who have been vaccinated with viral vector vaccines.

A booster shot for the latter is recommended at least two months after full vaccination, and it is still recommended for residents of care homes and other social care institutions, and patients with chronic disease of all ages.

Initially it was also recommended for all those older than 65, but now this was lowered to 50.

The group recommends the use of viral vector vaccines for people with a contraindication to mRNA Covid-19 vaccines.

STA, 2 November 2021 - The majority of Slovenian hospitals will suspend all elective procedures as they move to increase the capacity of overflowing Covid-19 wards, it was agreed at a meeting Tuesday featuring hospital directors and the Health Ministry.

The number of beds for Covid patients at intensive care units will rise to 182 by tomorrow, and the number of non-ICU beds will rise from 479 to to 590.

There were 158 Covid patients in ICU wards this morning and 476 in regular Covid wards, meaning that the majority of hospitals are already over-capacity with Covid patients.

Robert Carotta, the national coordinator for Covid hospital wards, told the STA that the number of patients has recently been growing at the fastest pace since the start of the pandemic.

"If these trends continue, healthcare will not be able to cope any more and we're not far from that," Carotta said, noting that Slovenia was on the cusp of the "Bergamo scenario".

The maximum number of ICU beds Slovenia can currently provide for Covid patients is 192, which is slightly less than in the previous wave since there is a severe shortage of nursing staff at hospitals.

Overall, he thinks Slovenian hospitals can accommodate around 1,200 Covid patients in regular and ICU wards.