Covid-19 Delta variant in Bulgaria: Health officials step up calls to get vaccinated
Health authorities in Bulgaria are urging the public to be vaccinated against Covid-19, against the background of confirmed cases of the Delta variant in the country and the possibility of a fourth wave by the end of August.
Professor Iva Hristova, head of the National Centre for Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, said that calculations showed that in Europe in July and August, between 50 and 75 per cent of cases will be the Delta variant of Covid-19.
“To protect ourselves, it is important to immunise ourselves,” Hristova said.
The available vaccines against Covid-19 provide good protection against infection with the new variants and prevent severe illness, she said.
Bulgaria’s Chief State Health Inspector Associate Professor Angel Kunchev said that by theend of the summer, the Delta variant of the coronavirus will become dominant in Europe.
It has been proven that the Delta variant affects the lower age group, as the seven cases in Bulgaria are in the 30-50-year-old age group, Kunchev said.
There is no significant difference in the severity of the course compared to other variants of Covid-19, but there is information that this variant is more difficult to treat, he said.
The Delta variant is 60 per cent more contagious, which makes it extremely fast in terms of it spreading, Kunchev said.
“The measures known so far will be effective against the Delta version of Covid-19, but if we want to be as prepared as possible to meet this variant, our society must have high immunisation coverage. Everything else is palliative measures,” he said.
Epidemiologist Professor Mira Kozhuharova said that it was probable that a new wave of Covid-19 was coming by the end of August or at the beginning of September at the latest.
The confirmation of the Delta variant in Bulgaria must be a red warning light, Kozhuharova said.
“Currently, the epidemiological situation in the country is calm. The solution is in vaccines, which prevent the severe course of the disease,” she said.
“The more people are vaccinated, the fewer cases we will have,” Kozhuharova said.
According to the June 29 report by the national information system, as The Sofia Globe reported earlier, 8102 doses of vaccines against Covid-19 were administered in Bulgaria in the past day, bringing the total to 1 735 675 since Bulgaria began its vaccination drive against Covid-19 on December 27 2020.
A total of 790 971 people in Bulgaria have completed the vaccination cycle, meaning either that they have received a second dose or one from a single-dose vaccine. This includes 4335 on Monday.
(Photo: Sofia municipality)
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