Over the last ten weeks, 117 Covid-19 patients in Croatia ended up on ventilators, and 110 of them had not been vaccinated before getting the disease, Health Minister Vili Beros said on Thursday.

Over the last 24 hours, 9,989 coronavirus tests have been performed with 8 percent, or 798, turning out to be positive; 11 Covid patients have died, bringing the Covid-19-related death toll to date 8,349. Currently, there are 3,943 active cases in Croatia, and of them, 440 are receiving hospital treatment, including 53 who are on ventilators.

In the week 23-30 August, 4,140 people had tested positive for the virus, and 86 percent of them had not been vaccinated.

“Hospitals are increasing their capacity for Covid patients in line with recent developments,” he said.

The average age of hospitalised patients in what is considered now the fourth wave of the pandemic is lower than in the third wave, state agency Hina reported, citing Beros, without stating what that age is.

“The share of children among hospitalized Covid patients has tripled,” Beros noted.

Since the start of its vaccine rollout, Croatia has administered nearly 3.3 million vaccines, and 43 percent of the entire population, or 51 percent of all adults, have been vaccinated. Until 30 August, 83 percent of doctors and 61 percent of nurses and medical technicians received vaccinations.

A day of hospital treatment of a Covid patient costs 11,000 kuna (€1,469) and the average duration of hospitalisation is 20 days. Hospitalization and sick leave for Covid patients have cost the government 2.7 billion kuna (€360 million) so far, which is equivalent to half the value of the recently built Peljesac Bridge, Beros said.

(€1 = 7.49 kuna)