Hungarian healthcare system

Hungary to send doctors to help in Slovenia

Gergely Gulyás, the prime minister’s chief of staff confirmed that during yesterday’s government info. Hungary is to send ten doctors to Slovenia to help amid the serious epidemic there – he said.

Regarding the Stop Soros package of laws which the European Court of Justice ruled unlawful, Gulyás said the government was examining the ruling. He added the government considered the European Commission’s “stand in favour of migration taken within a single week of the court’s ruling” to be “a serious mistake”. Gulyás said the EC should follow the instructions of European government leaders and draft a clear set of rules to advance the protection of the EU’s external borders.

Commenting on the situation on the Poland-Belarus border, Gulyás noted that German Chancellor Angela Merkel was handling the diplomacy, and “Hungary knows what its weight is,” though if a request was received, he added, Hungary would not hesitate to step up. Every possible support for protecting the external borders should be provided, he said.

Asked about recent legislation on

changing address rules for voters in the general election,

Gulyás said the new rules did not offer any greater room for manoeuver that those up to now. Neither did they connect with the right to vote, he insisted. The government estimates that 1.5-2 million people live somewhere other than at their declared address, he added.

Fidesz trying to invigorate ‘voter tourism’?

During the five-week parliamentary session, no objections to the amendment were made, he said. A debate emerged only later, when an organisation linked to George Soros complained about the new law, Gulyás added. Responding to a question on the economy, Gulyas said the government considered it important that certain sectors of the economy should be in Hungarian hands to a sufficient degree, and more must be done to achieve this in the food industry and retail.

Regarding the possible redrafting of next year’s budget, he said the government awaited the central bank’s 2022 inflation forecast to be published in December. He said the government concurred with the consensus that inflation would not fall back to around three percent before the second half of next year.

Hungary face mask Budapest
Read alsoFrom Saturday wearing masks in enclosed spaces will be compulsory in Hungary!

Hungarian media expect further restrictions to be announced today!

Hungary government Europe terror

Gergely Gulyás, the chief of the Prime Minister’s staff, and Alexandra Szentkirályi, the government’s spokeswoman, regularly hold press conferences every second week. During them, they share the latest and most important decisions of the Orbán-administration and answer the press’s questions. Last week, they announced that the government decided to cap fuel prices at HUF 480 (EUR 1.6) per litre. Even though two weeks have not passed, they will hold another press conference today, so the media expect that there will be important announcements concerning the worsening situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Rising COVID numbers

Two weeks ago, the government reintroduced obligatory mask-wearing on public transport and entrusted employers with the right to prescribe mandatory vaccination for their employees. However, the number of new infections and patients needing hospital care or even respiratory assistance continued to rise in the last two weeks. Today, the number of newly infected patients was above 10 thousand again, and there are still more than 600 people on ventilators.

More than 10 thousand new infections in the past 24h!

Not surprisingly, yesterday, Minister of Human Resources Miklós Kásler

banned every gathering, conference, and meeting for healthcare professionals in Hungary.

The Hungarian Medical Chamber demands restrictions

The Hungarian Medical Chamber would like to introduce similar rules everywhere in the country, index.hu reported. Based on their list of demands yesterday, they would reintroduce obligatory mask-wearing in closed spaces. That would include, for example, all malls, shops, cinemas, and theatres. Furthermore,

they would not allow mass events.

According to their demands, only people inoculated with at least two jabs or with a recently done negative PCR test could enter bars and restaurants. They would like the government to support the shift to home office and raise the salary of healthcare employees.

Today’s press conference is planned to start at 3 pm. Of course, we will keep you updated if the government announces further restrictions.

budapest airport
Read alsoUS Centre for Disease Control: Hungary among most dangerous destinations

More than 600 patients need respiratory assistance

Coronavirus hospital
Altogether 131 patients died of a Covid-related illness during the past 24 hours, while 10,767 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.
 
So far 6,013,007 people have received a first jab, while 5,784,958 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,714,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 121,138, while hospitals are treating 5,969 Covid-19 patients, 606 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 987,199 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 32,645. Fully 833,416 people have made a recovery.

There are 54,312 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 7,954,654.
christmas, fair, Budapest
Read alsoChristmas Market at Vörösmarty Square to start next week – here are the changes, PHOTOS

US Centre for Disease Control: Hungary among most dangerous destinations

budapest airport

The coronavirus has been present since its discovery in China in late 2019. It has hit the rest of the world at the beginning of 2020. Since its first appearance, we are currently in the fourth wave of the pandemic. The number of infections has surged in many regions around the world triggering stricter restrictions on travel and human interaction.

According to the latest information of the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday, Hungary is among the most dangerous countries in terms of Covid infection. Moreover, the health organisation discourages individuals from travelling to Hungary unless it is really necessary.

CDC Recommendations

The CDC has four tiers of risk assessment for COVID-19. Level one is the least risky while level four is the most dangerous in terms of contracting the virus.

On Monday, November 15, the CDC moved a total of four countries to level four, including Hungary, Iceland, Guernsey, and the Czech Republic.

As CNN reports, these countries now have been added to the other 70 unsafe countries among which there are many popular tourist destinations. These include Belgium, the Netherlands, Singapore, Turkey, and many more at level four.

These Hungarian employers made vaccination against COVID-19 mandatory for their workers

Minister told when 5-11-year-olds can receive the vaccine

CDC recommendations about Hungary:

  • Avoid travel to Hungary.
  • If you must travel to Hungary, make sure you are fully vaccinated prior to your departure.
  • Due to the current situation in Hungary, even fully vaccinated travellers may be at risk of getting and spreading COVID-19 variants.
  • Travellers should follow all recommendations and requirements in Hungary, including wearing a mask and staying 6 feet apart from others.

Statistics

This new regulation is not that surprising since the number of infections has been steadily rising in the past few months in Hungary. According to the latest Hungarian data, 5,323 new cases of coronavirus infections have been registered with over 5,800 active infections treated in hospitals. Alarmingly, 545 people are on ventilators. On a more positive note, over 6 million people have received their first jab in Hungary.

Hvg reports, that recently the Czech Republic has also placed Hungary on the list of countries not recommended for unnecessary travel. According to the map of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, almost all of Hungary is deep red which indicates a high rate of Covid infections.

EU Coronavirus Infection Map November 10
Source: ECDC

Make sure to observe safety regulations while travelling and interacting with people. Be safe and keep healthy.

Bazilika Christmas fair
Read alsoHungarian Christmas fairs that you can visit only with an immunity certificate

Charges raised against two Iranians for rowdy behaviour in hospital

Street fight public brawl Germany

Charges have been pressed against two male Iranian citizens for shouting and acting violently last March when they were forced to stay in a hospital as a result of suspected Covid infection, the chief public prosecutor’s office said on Friday.

Several Iranian citizens were taken under epidemiological supervision in a Budapest hospital on March 7, 2020, the office said. The two suspects,

aged 24 and 23,

were taken to the hospital for testing in the afternoon. After being told that were not allowed to leave, they shouted and refused to cooperate with hospital staff before climbing out of a window to a terrace and going to other rooms in the hospital, despite being told to stay in their room. When staff refused to open their terrace door, they kicked it repeatedly.

The 9th district prosecutor’s office submitted an indictment to the Pest county district court for rowdy behaviour and initiated a suspended prison sentence.

Prosecution ends against Iranian university students expelled from Hungary

Altogether
 
116 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours,
 
while 8,370 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday. So far 5,992,142 people have received a first jab, while 5,768,941 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,527,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab.
 
The number of active infections stands at 89,581, while hospitals are treating 5,147 Covid-19 patients, 509 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 939,784 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 31,867. Fully 818,336 people have made a recovery. There are 47,575 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 7,752,519.
hungary police
Read alsoCoronavirus – Honduran national arrested in Hungary for epidemic-related fraud

Almost 500 patients need respiratory assistance, hospitals treat nearly 5,000

Coronavirus hospital

Altogether 132 patients died of a Covid-related illness over the past 24 hours, while 8,394 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.

So far 5,986,727 people have received a first jab, while 5,764,573 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,475,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab. The number of active infections stands at 83,818, while

hospitals are treating 4,990 Covid-19 patients,

488 of whom need respiratory assistance. Since the first outbreak, 931,414 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 31,751. Fully 815,845 people have made a recovery.

There are 39,655 people in official quarantine, while the number of tests taken stands at 7,715,195.

Meanwhile, Hungary has delivered some
 
200,000 jabs of Covid vaccine to Istanbul to be shipped to African countries
 
as part of a donation by members of the Turkic Council. Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, presented the doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine to Turkic Council Secretary General Baghdad Amreyev at a joint press conference on Thursday.
 
Hungary to develop Rwanda’s water management facilities


Speaking at the event, Szijjártó said that the fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic had hit the world harder than expected. “It has made it even clearer that vaccination is the only way of protection and that those who have not been vaccinated are exposed to a much greater risk this time than in previous waves,” he said.
 
Szijjártó said that Hungary has sufficient vaccine supplies for domestic vaccination and has extra reserves to help other countries that are in a difficult situation. “This is why we immediately said yes to the Turkish initiative in the framework of which Turkey and Hungary are each to donate 200,000 doses of vaccine with Azerbaijan donating an additional 100,000 doses
 
to the most disadvantaged African countries
 
with the coordination of the Turkic Council, to save hundreds of thousands of lives,” he said.

The Turkic Council is an intergovernmental organisation established in 2009 to promote comprehensive cooperation among Turkic speaking states. Its members are Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkey. Hungary has had observer status in the organisation since 2018.
Read alsoLawmakers are not required to be vaccinated in Hungary!

Hungarian infectious disease specialist: new restrictions may come

János Szlávik, chief infectious disease specialist of the South Pest Central Hospital, spoke about the coronavirus. Szlávik believes that the waves of epidemics mostly consist of an ascending phase and a short stagnation followed by a descending phase. Hungary is currently in the ascending phase.

The Hungarian epidemic situation is getting worse again

The number of people infected with the coronavirus has been steadily rising in recent days. Szlávik also pointed out that there were way more restrictions when the figures were this bad in March. However, an important difference is that there were not that many vaccinated people back then. The Hungarian Government decided not to impose further restrictions probably because it took into account the high vaccination rate.

Although, we do not know what to expect in the future. Many are afraid that there will be further restrictions at Christmas time.

“I do not think anyone can say that, because the number of cases that we have now is very high, so it is also conceivable that the numbers will drop by Christmas time,”

said Szlávik. The government has been organising a vaccination action week to prevent the coronavirus epidemic from deteriorating.

Restrictions may come soon

Szlávik believes that it would be important to introduce new restrictions. Due to limited capacity of the Hungarian health care system, the number of infected people must not increase further. According to Szlávik, the use of the protection card has become more and more widespread. Consequently, the number of people who choose to get vaccinated has been also rising.

“After all, if we restrict an unvaccinated person in his daily life, sooner or later he will be compelled to take the vaccine so that he can continue his everyday life with the same normality as before.”

Vaccinations take time to develop protection. Therefore, whoever wants to be vaccinated should go for vaccination as soon as possible. In addition, it is important to mention that the coronavirus vaccine and the flu shot can be taken at the same time, writes index.hu.

Szlávik also mentioned the anti-coronavirus medicine. There are two pills that are in the third phase of research, said the infectious disease specialist on TV2. Based on current tests, both drugs prove to be effective. They are especially useful to treat mild to moderate symptoms. According to the preliminary studies, one of the pills, that was manufactured by Pfizer, is 89 percent effective for prevention of hospitalization and death.

State employees will have to decide between getting vaccinated or being put on unpaid leave

Employment-job-work
PM Viktor Orbán said in his regular Friday morning interview that until everyone is inoculated the virus will keep lingering. He added that while less than one percent of those who are vaccinated fall ill with Covid, those who have not received the jab were ten times more at risk. Although those who are vaccinated can also contract the virus, “far fewer of them” end up seriously ill than those who are unvaccinated, the prime minister said.

He said protective measures like mask mandates were effective in slowing the spread of the virus but did not guarantee full protection. “So we mustn’t be under the illusion that we are protected if we go into lockdown, self-isolate and wear a mask. That doesn’t protect us, only the vaccine does,” Orbán said.
 
The prime minister said Hungary will have 15 million coronavirus vaccine doses delivered by the end of the year.
 
Concerning the new protective measures introduced from Nov. 1, Orban said the reason the government had got employers involved in the defence against the pandemic was because the virus was spreading faster in some parts of the country than others. Employers have therefore been given the right to order their employees to get vaccinated and put those who do not comply on unpaid leave, he noted, acknowledging that “this is a controversial measure”. Orban added, at the same time, that though Hungarians would not have accepted a blanket vaccine mandate, they accepted such a decision being taken by the workplace community.

Workers employed by state institutions who come into contact with a lot of people but refuse to get vaccinated will be put on unpaid leave with immediate effect.
 
Eventually all state employees will have to decide between getting vaccinated or being put on unpaid leave, he added.
Viktor Orbán
Read alsoObligatory vaccination in Hungary soon? Here is what PM Orbán said

Obligatory vaccination in Hungary soon? Here is what PM Orbán said

Viktor Orbán
No protective measure can shield people from contracting the coronavirus, only the vaccine can, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Friday.
 
In a regular interview with public broadcaster Kossuth Rádió, the prime minister noted that the Delta variant of the virus was more aggressive and infectious than its previous variants.
 
Those who are inoculated against Covid are not in danger,
 
he said, adding at the same time that the virus was life threatening to those who have not been vaccinated. Not only are they likely to get infected, but they will also likely end up seriously ill and in hospital, Orbán warned, and encouraged everyone to get the vaccine. Until everyone is inoculated the virus will keep lingering, he said, adding that while less than one percent of those who are vaccinated fall ill with Covid, those who have not received the jab were ten times more at risk.
 
According to 444.hu, the prime minister cleared that the Hungarians would not support obligatory vaccination. But, based on surveys, people back the idea of putting that decision in the hands of the employers. And that is why the government decided so last week.
 
 
Based on the latest COVID news, eighty-three patients died of a Covid-related illness in the past 24 hours, while 6,804 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday. So far 5,967,747 people have received a first jab, while 5,748,682 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,315,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab. The number of active infections stands at 56,260, while
 
hospitals are treating 3,629 Covid patients, 366 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 892,164 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 31,184. Fully 804,720 people have made a recovery.
mask restriction hungary
Read alsoBudapest residents want stricter COVID restrictions

Hungary has the highest COVID reproduction number in the world!

Coronavirus hospital

The coronavirus reproduction number shows how many healthy people can catch the virus from an infected person.

According to hvg.hu, Hungary has the highest reproduction number in the world: 1.85. This means that 100 infected people can transmit the disease to 185 non-infected ones. The second place belongs to Colombia (1.76), while the third position is occupied by the Czech Republic, with a reproduction number of 1.68.

Zsolt Boldogkői, a Hungarian virologist, said that the epidemic now has another outbreak in Hungary, and the fourth wave is coming from the East. Gergely Röst, a Hungarian Mathematician, said that the new wave affected regions where the vaccination rate is low. He added that the current trend might result in calamities soon. Moreover,

even a new vaccination campaign would not be enough to stop the accelerating spread of the virus.

Chinese vaccine ineffective against COVID?

 

Based on MTI, one hundred and seven patients died of a Covid-related illness in the past 24 hours, while 6,268 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday. So far, 5,962,878 people have received their first jab, while 5,744,219 have been fully vaccinated. 1,274,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab. The number of active infections stands at 51,108, while hospitals are treating 3,366 Covid patients, 349 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 885,360 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 31,101. 803,151 people have made a full recovery. A total of 22,587 people are in official quarantine, and 7,498,823 tests have been registered.

mask restriction hungary
Read alsoBudapest residents want stricter COVID restrictions

Chinese vaccine ineffective against COVID?

Vaccine
Socialist MEP István Újhelyi is turning to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, asking him to name the authorities responsible for collecting the vaccination data of people who have contracted the coronavirus.
 
Újhelyi told an online press conference on Wednesday that he had submitted a request for data of public interest in September on the vaccination status of people hospitalised with the coronavirus. However, the human resources ministry, the prime minister’s office and the national public health centre said they were not in charge of collecting that information, he said.

Government institutions may be “shirking responsibility” because Hungary had vaccinated people over 65 with the Sinopharm vaccine, contrary to the manufacturer’s instructions, Újhelyi said.
 
Those citizens may be hospitalised in great numbers now,
 
he insisted.
 
More than 3,000 people are in hospitals because of the COVID


As well as greatly hindering the vaccination campaign, this “mendacious communication” is putting the lives of Hungarians at risk, Újhelyi said.

Should the opposition come to power in the 2022 spring elections, they will “investigate every data, contract and instruction on the vaccines,” he said.
mask restriction hungary
Read alsoBudapest residents want stricter COVID restrictions

More than 3,000 people are in hospitals because of the COVID

Seventy-four patients died of a Covid-related illness in the past 24 hours, while 2,595 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday.

So far 5,958,890 people have received a first jab, while 5,740,424 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,243,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab.

The number of active infections stands at 46,408, while hospitals are treating 3,172 Covid patients, 350 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Budapest residents want stricter COVID restrictions

 

Since the first outbreak, 879,092 infections have been registered, while the number of fatalities has risen to 30,994. Fully 801,690 people have made a recovery.

Fully 19,192 people are in official quarantine, and 7,477,324 tests have been taken.

Széchenyi spa, Budapest, Hungary
Read alsoAttention! New Covid regulations are in effect, also in Hungarian spas

Everything you need to know about Covid restrictions in Hungary starting today

Coronavirus Patient Hospital Covid

Unfortunately, coronavirus numbers have risen quite sharply over the past few weeks, and in order to combat that, the government has made some decisions that take effect from today.

Recently, Hungary has received the second-worst classification in terms of Covid infection numbers by the European Union. Here are the restrictions you must keep in mind.

Visitor Ban

From November 1st, visiting all hospitals is banned. According to Cecília Müller, it was necessary to impose a ban on visiting inpatient care in order to maintain and ensure the functioning of the healthcare system. This does not include visiting last-stage terminally ill patients.

In social institutions, the leader there decides on a ban on leaving and visiting the institution from 1 November, says Portfolio.

Mandatory Vaccination?

Under the new rules, employers may also require employees of non-state and municipal companies and organisations to be vaccinated. In the absence of vaccination, employers may send employees on unpaid leave.

Origo says that it is important, however, that employers must inform their workers in written form and define a deadline as well as the consequences of failing to be vaccinated.

On Friday, they added that the same goes for the people working at the Hungarian Defence Forces. They have to take the first dose by December 1st, says Telex. The Covid vaccine is also mandatory for people employed by state or municipal institutions. Their deadline is December 15th if they work closely with clients and January 31st if they do not.

Active COVID-19 infections grow to nearly 35,000 in Hungary – latest numbers

Government: those that refuse to get vaccinated can be forced to take unpaid leave

Covid Map Europe
Source: ECDC

Mask-wearing measures

The latest measures take effect throughout Hungary from today, November 1st. Mask-wearing is mandatory for:

  • travellers and workers on public transport.
  • those at stations, train stations, and stops, as well as employees if they work in an area where they are in contact with travellers.

Exclusions: Drivers who work in a closed cabin, children under 6 years of age or people with psychosocial disability or autism.

People should wear a mask that completely covers the nose and mouth. Anyone who does not follow the rules can be excluded from public transportation immediately. If they do not leave on request, the company could ask for police assistance.

Gergely Karácsony, the Mayor of Budapest, announced even stricter measures in the capital on his Facebook page. In addition to the above rules,

  • it is mandatory to wear a mask inside theatres, cinemas, and libraries.

These are places where the Hungarian capital’s leadership has the legal option of introducing mandatory mask-wearing. The Mayor is also negotiating with the Hungarian government to order the general use of masks indoors due to worsening coronavirus numbers.

‘Szalagavató’ is a special Hungarian event for high school graduates to celebrate that they have finished their studies. It usually also culminates in a ball. As per the current rulings, because it is a special school event, it is not subject to emergency regulations.

But according to Hvg, Minister Miklós Kásler signed a document that says that people (parents, relatives) need to comply with the new regulations, that is, they need to wear masks in enclosed spaces while attending.

orbán prime minister
Read alsoOfficial gazette: Govt issues decree giving employers power to require Covid jabs

These are the latest mask-wearing rules in Hungary

hungary mask wearing

The coronavirus started spreading in 2019. Since then, states in each country took various precautions to curb the spread of the virus. The vaccine stopped the virus for a while. However, the emergence of new viral mutations is once again causing the pandemic to spread. Mandatory mask-wearing has re-emerged in Hungary.

Mandatory mask-wearing throughout Hungary

First of all, Gergely Gulyás spoke about the new measures at the government information on Thursday. Later, the official legislation appeared in the Hungarian Gazette.

The measures will take effect throughout Hungary from 1 November.

Napi.hu collected the most important information. From November, wearing masks is mandatory:

  • For travellers and workers on public transport, except for those who are under 6 years of age or have a psychosocial disability or autism.
  • For those at stations, trains stations, and stops.

People should wear a mask that completely covers the nose and mouth.

Anyone who does not follow the rules can be excluded from public transportation. Under the new rules, employers may also require employees of non-state and municipal companies and organisations to be vaccinated. In the absence of vaccination, employers may send employees on unpaid leave.

Budapest measures

Gergely Karácsony, the Mayor of Budapest, announced the latest measures on Facebook. In the Hungarian capital, even stricter measures will be introduced, writes portfolio.hu.

It is mandatory to wear a mask in theatres, cinemas, and libraries.

In these places, the Hungarian capital’s leadership has the legal option of introducing mandatory mask-wearing. Mask-wearing refers to the interiors of the places listed above. Karácsony is also negotiating with the Hungarian government to order the general use of masks indoors due to worsening coronavirus data.

The Mayor of Budapest added that negotiations with the companies and institutions of the Budapest Municipality will begin. Employee representatives are also involved in the negotiations. The main topic of discussion will be which jobs in the public service will require vaccination against the coronavirus. According to Karácsony, such positions could be, for example, those working in a nursing home.

Number of new infections skyrocketing in Hungary!

Hospital-coronavirus Hungary
Forty-five patients died of a Covid-related illness in the past 24 hours, while 4,039 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.
 
So far 5,947,085 people have received a first jab, while 5,728,025 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,164,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab. The number of active infections stands at 31,544, while hospitals are
 
treating 1,970 Covid patients, 204 of whom need respiratory assistance.
 
Since the first outbreak, 859,378 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 30,692. Fully 797,142 people have made a recovery.
 
There are 22,710 people in official quarantine, while 7,348,118 tests have been officially carried out.
 
 
 
Meanwhile, Hungary is sending 40 ventilators, 1,650 noninvasive ventilation (NIV) masks and 3,000 packages of the drug favipiravir to 20 hospitals in Romania, mostly in Transylvania, to aid the country in its management of the coronavirus epidemic, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Thursday.
 
Considering that the epidemic knows no boundaries, the success of epidemic management in neighbouring countries greatly contributes to the success of Hungary’s epidemic response efforts, he said.
 
He added that a fourth wave of the epidemic was raging across Europe and countries with low vaccination rates, such as Romania, could easily get in trouble.
 
Many patients in Romania need invasive treatment and many of the hospitals find it hard to cope, he said. Consultations on the best ways to help are ongoing between representatives of the Hungarian government and the Romanian government, including many ethnic Hungarians, such as Deputy Prime Minister Hunor Kelemen and Health Minister Attila Cseke, he added.
coronavirus-hungary-hospital
Read alsoInfectologist: If the pandemic worsens, Hungary will have to take action

The opposition would authorise local governments to make mask-wearing compulsory

Hungary face mask Budapest
A cooperation dubbed ELEGY and formed by opposition parties, politicians and civil organisations has called for urgent government measures to slow the spread of coronavirus infections.
 
Vaccinations prevent severe cases of infection but cannot stop the spread of the virus, a statement by ELEGY member Democratic Cooperation (DK) said on Wednesday.

ELEGY demanded authorising local governments and other institutions to make mask-wearing compulsory. It also called on the government to make available mass antigen testing for Covid-19 free of charge, initially in educational institutions, the statement said. In an effort to simplify the process of getting vaccinated, ELEGY urged the government to cancel the requirement of pre-registration.
 
Budapest Mayor urges mandatory mask-wearing


The statement has been signed by politicians of DK, Jobbik, LMP, the Hungarian Liberal Party, the new Everyone’s Hungary Movement (MMM), Momentum, the Socialists and Párbeszéd, and representatives of ELEGY.
coronavirus-hospital-patient
Read alsoMore than 3,000 new COVID infections registered in only 24 hours

More than 3,000 new COVID infections registered in only 24 hours

coronavirus-hospital-patient
Thirty-six patients died of a Covid-related illness in the past 24 hours, while 3,125 new coronavirus infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Wednesday.
 
So far 5,943,832 people have received a first jab, while 5,724,539 have been fully vaccinated. Fully 1,141,000 Hungarians have received a booster jab.
 
The number of active infections stands at 28,257,
 
while hospitals are treating 1,798 Covid patients, 197 of whom need respiratory assistance.
 
Budapest Mayor urges mandatory mask-wearing


Since the first outbreak, 855,339 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 30,647. Fully 796,435 people have made a recovery.

There are 19,379 people in official quarantine, while 7,320,374 tests have been officially carried out.
coronavirus-hungary-hospital
Read alsoInfectologist: If the pandemic worsens, Hungary will have to take action

Budapest Mayor urges mandatory mask-wearing

karácsony

It seems that there is some conflict concerning mask-wearing in Budapest. The number of infected started to rise again. Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony would like to make mask-wearing mandatory in closed spaces, including public transportation.

The Evidence

According to Telex, it is evident that the fourth wave is showing an upward trend, with infections rising significantly compared to previous numbers. The National Centre for Public Health says that the coronavirus concentration of wastewater is rapidly growing all around Hungary.

According to the government’s latest coronavirus data, over 8,389 people got infected since Friday and hospitals are currently treating over 1,685 Covid patients. Almost 200 of them need respiratory assistance.

János Szlávik infectologist said it is difficult to project the development of the epidemic because the Delta variant is significantly more infectious.

At the same time, he said the fourth wave was likely to peak in November or December.

The Proposal

According to Index, now the Mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony himself, made an announcement on Tuesday. He said that the situation in Budapest is not worse than the country average but called the attention to the fact that last year, significant epidemiological measures were implemented at the same level of infection as of recently. “Yet we see no measures in place today,” he added.

This is what the Hungarian COVID medicine will be capable of

The leadership of Budapest, including vice mayor Ambrus Kiss, wanted to make mask-wearing mandatory on public transportations for some time now. Due to a change of law however, they have no authority to do so. So, they have turned to Sándor Pintér, Minister of Internal Affairs to consider a stricter mask-wearing protocol, but they have yet to receive an answer.

The Mayor of Budapest asked citizens to wear masks when using the public transportation.

In the following period, the Centre for Budapest Transport will voice the importance of mask-wearing on all platforms and kindly asks public transportation users to wear a mask while travelling.

“We ask the government to make mask-wearing mandatory again. This is all we can do now,” Gergely Karácsony, mayor of Budapest told the press, says Portfolio.

Since they cannot make that mandatory on a municipality level, it must come from higher up, they will change mask-wearing rules in establishments under the scope which they hold.

The Measures

From November 2, there will be stricter measures in elderly homes, said vice mayor Erzsébet Gy. Németh.

A curfew will be in place, meaning that the elderly can only visit their family. If they decide to visit, they would have to be isolated once they go back to the home. Only family members with immunity certificates can take the elderly home, however.

Contactless visits will still be in place and visitors will have to wear masks from next month. However, the vice mayor added that the

family of elderly people in the final stages of terminal illness will be given the opportunity to visit their relative.

coronavirus-hungary-hospital
Read alsoInfectologist: If the pandemic worsens, Hungary will have to take action