Slovenia's epidemiologists warned on Tuesday that the COVID-19 epidemic isn't over despite a significant drop in new cases, and that some restrictions need to remain in place throughout the summer.

In the past 24 hours, 326 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Slovenia and it is expected that the daily average will fall below 300 by next week, which means that the country will have finally entered the green stage, allowing more restrictions to be lifted.

However, this does not mean that people can relax completely, epidemiologist Irena Grmek-Kosnik from the national public health institute told a press conference in Ljubljana, adding they will still be required to wear masks and adhere to basic anti-epidemic hygienic measures, and in a lot of cases they will have to confirm their immunity if they wish to attend some events or cross the border.

Grmek-Kosnik added that Slovenia declared a state of epidemic last year when there were 140 new cases in one day and there were fewer people in hospitals than there are now.

According to data released by the government, in the past 24 hours 3,558 PCR tests were conducted, confirming 326 new cases of the novel coronavirus, and there are 300 COVID hospitalised patients while three people died as a consequence.

The government will make a decision on Thursday related to declaring the green stage and possibly relaxing some measures.