Romanian authorities have revised estimates for Covid cases upwards to 2,000 new cases a day at the end of next month.
Vaccine coordinator Valeriu Gheorghita initially predicted a rise to 1,500 to 1,600 cases at the end of September.
But new infections have risen faster than forecast. Some restrictions were lifted during the in recent months and other restrictions were not respected, authorities said. IThe summer meant people spent time at large gatherings, on crowded beaches or at mountain resorts.
„The spike in cases is faster than we anticipated,” Dr Gheorghita said on Sunday. He said the 2,000 plus figure was the current estimate, but it could be higher or lower.
Some 868 new cases were posted on Monday, a day when less infections are reported due to reduced testing over the weekend. The figure was more than twice than last Monday’s.
One reason for the increase is the spread of the new delta variant which is more contagious than earlier mutations. About one-fifth of new cases are now the delta variant, he said.
Vaccination rates are low in the EU Black Sea state. About 30% of the over 12s have been immunized, which translates to about 27% of the total population.
“Unfortunately, we see a heightened mobility and interaction between people which is combined with a very low level of respect for prevention measures,” Dr. Gheorghita said.
“We don’t expect the epidemiological situation to get any better, in fact with the delta variant which is becoming dominant, it will get worse,” he told Digi24.
