Matovic: I Think Border Rules with Czech Republic Should Be Tightened

Bratislava, October 8 (TASR) – The question of tightening up border regulations has arisen in connection with developments in the coronavirus outbreak in the Czech Republic, said Prime Minister Igor Matovic (OLaNO) on Thursday, adding that he personally thinks that measures should be made stricter and exemptions when crossing borders revised.

The effect of measures that have been employed in order to halt the spread of coronavirus should become apparent this weekend. “It’s of vital necessity – if the number of cases continues to grow and we don’t take stronger protective measures, we’ll endanger our lives and health,” stressed the prime minister.

Matovic said that antigen tests should be available in Slovakia next Tuesday (October 13), but they shouldn’t be viewed as a panacea, he said, adding that antigen tests detect only three coronavirus-positive people in ten. “They should help us significantly to detect those who are the most infectious and present the biggest danger to others,” said Matovic.

According to the prime minister, hygienists and health-care workers are currently dealing with 30 times as many positively tested people than in the first wave. He noted that some hospitals are currently undergoing reprofiling of their departments in order to multiple the number of beds for coronavirus-positive patients by between eight and nineteen times.

“There is certainly a risk of delays in other treatment where we’ll have to vacate beds for COVID-19 patients,” said Matovic.