The number of new cases of COVID-19 in Slovenia has been growing for the third consecutive week and the country's chief infectious disease specialist, Bojana Beovic, has said that one can already speak of the sixth wave of the COVID-19 epidemic, which is why caution is necessary.

“The sixth wave of the epidemic is underway and it has evidently been caused by the BA2 Omicron variant which is even more contagious than the BA1 variant, hence it is still necessary to wear masks indoors,” Beovic told Slovenian Television.

Epidemiologists and the government are still not considering reintroducing all of the previous restrictions, as the number of hospitalised patients is stable and relatively low, Slovenia’s media outlets have reported.

The government on Monday reported that 1,076 new cases of contagion were detected in the past 24 hours, 169 more than a week ago.

According to the Ministry of Health, 135 people are hospitalised, with 46 in intensive care, while another seven people have died.

The country currently has 33,281 active cases, which is 7,371 more than a week ago, the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) has reported.

The seven-day average of confirmed cases is continuing to grow and currently stands at 2,697 while the 14-day incidence per 100,000 population is 1,571.