Croatia confirms 11th case of coronavirus

Health Minister Vili Beroš (Photo: HRT)

The latest patient is a 60-year-old with close ties to the second patient who tested positive in Varaždin on Thursday, health authorities said on Friday during a daily coronavirus briefing.

Domestic Katja MiličićMarch 6, 2020, 8:52 p.m.

“Luckily, there have been no major new developments. We have received some 302 samples for testing. So far, all have been negative. Nine results are still pending,” said Dr. Alemka Markotić, the chief administrator at the Dr. Fran Mihaljević Infectious Diseases Hospital in Zagreb.

Members of the coronavirus taskforce said the patient showed mild symptoms, just like in the ten other cases.

The Education Ministry is telling schools to suspend all trips abroad for the time being.

Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli said there has been a drop in foreign visitors in the last 10 days, particularly those from Asia. The ministry is adjusting its marketing plans for the sector.

“We are working on marketing so that the moment that epidemiologists give the word that we are safe, we can go forward with a strong promotional campaign outside of Croatia,” Cappelli said.

Health Minister Vili Beroš chaired an emergency meeting of EU health ministers on the coronavirus in Brussels on Friday. Member states have agreed to boost preparations and organize a coordinated response to prevent the virus from further spreading across Europe.

“Right now both Croatia and the EU have enough resources to respond to this crisis, however, the question is how long it will last. That's why we are holding intensive talks and I am pleased that several ministers stressed that they have stepped up their countries' capacities to produce protective equipment and medicines. What's more complex, problematic, and cannot be ramped up is the production of things like respirators, but as far as we know there is enough of them available on the world market at this time.  The outcome of this latest meeting is that we will go forward with join public procurement for all member states,” Beroš said.