Effective May 5, gatherings of people will no longer be limited to 15 persons in Bulgaria, now that the country's COVID-19 metrics have improved. The easing of the restrictions was announced by outgoing Health Minister Kostadin Angelov at a weekly news briefing on the coronavirus situation. Not a single administrative region is red-coded, and recoveries are double the number of new infections, Angelov pointed out.

The average infection rate varies from 150 to 300 per 100,000 population.

"Tests and infections statistics are true and not warped. We can now clearly identify the indications of the COVID infections. We have learnt much from practice and know which numbers are important. We rest assured, but it depends a lot on how the pandemic will be managed with all measures that may have to be loosened or tightened. What matters most is to press ahead with the vaccination rollout as vigorously as at present," the Health Minister added.

Judging from figures, Bulgarians prefer the Pfizer vaccine. Enough vaccines are available at present, and another large shipment of some 400,000 doses will arrive in the last week of May. It is up to the regional health inspectorates, the Bulgarian Medical Association and general practitioners to make arrangements for carrying on the vaccination process at the same pace. Appointment-free vaccinations will continue after May 9.

"The next prime minister will decide what will happen to the [National Coronavirus] Task Force," Angelov said. He described as "an enormous achievement" the fact that Bulgaria is emerging from the third wave with a low stringency index.

The Health Minister insisted that Bulgaria is a risk-free tourist destination. He recalled that the Robert Koch Institute has dropped Bulgaria from its list of high risk countries.

The results of vaccine trials for children over 12 are expected in June. If the results are favourable, inoculation of this age group, too, can start even in mid-June, Kantardjiev said.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!