Health ministry mulls additional protective measures for senior citizens

Bulgaria's Minister of Health Prof. Kostadin Angelov confirmed that due to the spread of the coronavirus, additional measures for the protection of the elderly population are being discussed. 
In an interview with Nova TV this morning, Chief State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev pointed out the options that have been under discussion: introducing certain hours during which older people can go out, allowing older people to go out only at a certain distance from their homes, and the least likely option - complete isolation. 
The Minister of Health said that for the time being no restrictions will be introduced, but that control over the observance of the current measures will be strengthened, BNR reports.

Chief Health Inspector: All anti-epidemic measures are on the table

“500 new cases a day is something we can cope with for a long time,” Chief State Health Inspector Assoc. Prof. Angel Kunchev said for Nova TV, stating that there was a large number of hospital beds available. 
“However this does not mean there won’t be regions of the country where the situation will be critical,” he added. Around 15% of the coronavirus beds in hospitals are currently occupied. As to whether stricter measures will be imposed, Assoc. Prof. Kunchev said that this could happen if other countries resort to such measures. 

“All measures aimed at curbing the spread of the infection are on the table and are being discussed,” he said, and added that imposing new restrictions is not as important as observing that ones that are already in place.

New grim record: nearly 10% of PCR tests return positive

516 cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Bulgaria in the past 24 hours out of 5,209 PCR tests performed. 9.91% of all PCR tests returned positive, a new grim record since the beginning of the pandemic, data of the Single Coronavirus Information Portal show. 
The highest number of newly-registered Covid-19 cases is in Sofia-138, followed by Plovdiv- 51, Blagoevgrad- 49 and Burgas-31cases. 115 people have recovered from the virus and 7 patients have died in the past 24 hours. 1,063 people are receiving treatment in hospitals, 56 of whom in intensive care units. 
There are 6,816 active cases of Covid-19. A total of 8,740 people are under quarantine. 1,291 medics, including 464 doctors, have been diagnosed with Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. 

Winter tourist season in Bulgaria in doubt

“The tourist winter season will most likely be missed, just as the summer season was missed due to the Covid-19 situation,” stated Bulgaria's State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev during an annual conference organized by Travel Academy under the motto "The New Normal". 
The tourism sector has taken the most responsible measures and reacted most adequately to ensure the safety of its customers, Angel Kunchev said. 
Domestic tourism is expected to recover by the end of 2021, and international tourism by 2023, predicts Lublena Dimova from the European Tourism Commission, as quoted by Trud newspaper.

Compiled by Diana Tsankova