Slovenia has introduced tighter COVID-19 restrictions as of Monday as the country continues to record soaring test positivity rates, with some epidemiologists warning that even the latest measures will not be sufficient to put the spread of the infection under control.

In the past 24 hours 1,282 new COVID-19 cases and 12 related deaths have been confirmed. Test positivity rate is 43 percent.

The government has not opted for another lockdown, but for measures that include strict control of COVID-19 certificates, shorter working hours for bars and restaurants, and a ban on the work of discos and night clubs, as well as on gatherings outside one’s family circle.

Despite that, some experts believe this will not be sufficient to stabilise the situation and prevent the collapse of the health system due to the pressure on hospitals.

“This is a decision to immunise the population by letting the virus spread,” said immunologist and microbiologist Alojz Ihan, noting that Slovenia was behaving like the UK, where, he said, such measures were justified as a significantly higher portion of the population had been vaccinated.

He noted that one should have opted for much stricter anti-epidemic measures instead of what he described as “jumping from the third floor, hoping that we only break our legs.”

The number of hospitalisations in the country has continued to grow, with 843 hospitalised COVID-19 patients, of whom 186 are in intensive care wards.

The average of confirmed infections in a single day for the past week is 2,787, and the 14-day incidence is 1,737.

Interest in vaccination has been growing lately but mostly among elderly people who want to receive the booster dose. The vaccination rate has been stagnating at 53.3% of the total population.