Seven out of Bulgaria's 28 regions have officially declared a flu epidemic, leading health authorities to implement temporary measures to mitigate the virus's rapid spread, according to an announcement by the Health Ministry on Tuesday.

As of now, Pleven Region is already grappling with an epidemic, while Varna, Burgas, and Sofia are poised to follow suit from January 25. Concurrently, Gabrovo and Plovdiv are enforcing anti-epidemic measures until January 28, with Smolyan set to continue such measures until January 30.

The implemented measures involve the suspension of scheduled consultations for healthy pregnant women and children, along with preventive examinations and compulsory immunizations and re-immunizations. Stringent daily screening protocols have been activated in nurseries, kindergartens, and schools, while visits to hospitals and social institutions for both children and adults have been prohibited.

The Health Ministry affirmed that depending on the flu epidemic's progression in a specific area, the temporary anti-epidemic measures could be expanded and their duration extended.

Chief State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev expressed his expectation that, by the week's end, one-third of Bulgaria would have reached epidemic levels. This situation underscores the urgency of implementing and adhering to preventive measures to curb the flu's further escalation across the country.