Covid-19: All districts in Bulgaria are red zones

All 28 districts in Bulgaria are classified as Covid-19 red zones, it emerged at the Health Ministry’s weekly briefing on November 12.

To be classified as a red zone, the infection rate must be 120 per 100 000 population. The average morbidity in Bulgaria has reached 518 per 100 000.

Bulgaria is currently ranked 14th in morbidity in Europe and seventh in mortality.

The European countries with mortality rates higher than Bulgaria are the Czech Republic, Belgium, Hungary, Slovenia, Poland and Croatia, while those with mortality rates close to that of Bulgaria are France and Spain, Health Minister Kostadin Angelov told the briefing.

To date, 3459 medical personnel in Bulgaria have tested positive for new coronavirus. A total of 121 are being treated in hospital, nine in intensive care. Twenty-two medical personnel have died.

Across Bulgaria, 40 per cent of beds for Covid-19 patients not in need of intensive care are occupied, while 23 per cent of beds for intensive care are occupied.

The highest rates of Covid-19 bed occupancy are in the districts of Blagoevgrad, Gabrovo, Pernik, Razgrad, Turgovishte and Shoumen.

The head of Pirogov emergency hospital in Sofia, Professor Assen Baltov, said that in Bulgaria’s capital city, more than 3000 beds for treatment of moderate cases of Covid-19 had been added in recent days, along with 400 beds for intensive care.

Bulgaria has expressed interest in three of the first six vaccines to be registered with the European Medicines Agency, Angelov said.

There will be enough vaccines for all vulnerable groups – front-line doctors, the elderly, the chronically ill. The vaccine will not be included in the mandatory immunisation calendar in Bulgaria and will be free of charge for all Bulgarian citizens, Angelov said.

“Do not stock up on medications, do not buy antibiotics and do not self-medicate. This will lead to severe consequences for the whole society,” he said, adding an assurance that the country had sufficient medications.

As The Sofia Globe reported earlier, Bulgaria’s Health Ministry announced that it has amended the anti-epidemic restrictions, which it imposed last month until November 12, and extended their validity until November 30.

The Sofia Globe’s coverage of the Covid-19 situation in Bulgaria is supported by the Embassies of Switzerland and Finland.

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The Sofia Globe staff

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