PCR tests will not be mandatory anymore and rapid antigen tests will soon be sufficient to prove COVID-19 and obtain an EU digital COVID certificate, Health Minister Vili Beros said on Monday during his visit to the KBC Split Hospital with Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

“The testing paradigm will change, PCR tests will not be mandatory anymore and it will be possible to prove the disease by Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT), which are becoming more and more relevant,” Beros told reporters in response to their remarks about the time it takes to get tested with a PCR test.

PCR tests still required in the rest of EU

The Croatian Institute for Public Health (HZJZ) and Croatian Health Insurance Fund (HZZO) are expected to meet on Tuesday to determine Rapid Antigen Tests as sufficient on referrals. “That is a response to the emergence of the new variant of the virus,” said Beros.

A negative RAT will be sufficient to obtain an EU digital COVID certificate for use in Croatia, however, a negative PCR test is still required for the rest of the EU.

The new measure, which has been adapted to the new variant, will enter into force at midnight Monday.

Croatia logged 1,578 new COVID cases in the past 24 hours with 36.33% of those tested proving positive.

“We are registering an increase in new infections compared to last Monday, when there were 1,103 new cases,” Beros said while visiting the Split Hospital where the situation is quite dramatic, with a large influx of patients.

Beros said it was shocking that only about 50 residents of Split-Dalmatia County a day are coming for the first dose of a vaccine and that “younger people are convincing the elderly to not get vaccinated.”

He reiterated that mandatory vaccination is still not being considered, however, if the situation deteriorates further, that could be an option.

Hospitals on the coast filled more than those in continental Croatia

The minister called on citizens to think about the coming tourism season because the European Commission could well set the vaccination rate of the host country as a precondition for tourists to visit.

Hospitals on the coast are filling faster due to the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus compared to continental regions, which have higher vaccination rates.

Beros noted that occupancy in the Split Hospital is 92.7%, with 56.79% of ventilators in use whereas in the Osijek Hospital occupancy is at 51.85% and only 14.12% of ventilators are in use.

He added that 66.59% of the adult population in Croatia has received at least one vaccine dose while 594,120 people have received the third dose.

The 14-day incidence per 100,000 population has once again increased and yesterday it was 1,769.93, he said.

Plenkovic calls on people over 60 to get vaccinated

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic once again reiterated the importance of vaccination and getting the booster dose, particularly for residents of Split-Dalmatia County, where a large number of new infections is being detected.

“We have 217 hospitalised patients here and as many as 49 are on ventilators. I particularly call on elderly citizens, who are the most at risk, all those over 60 (to get vaccinated)… their families should explain to them why it is important to get vaccinated and thus have better protection,” underscored Plenkovic.

The PM met with the Split Hospital’s management to discuss development projects for the hospital.