Updated 12:28 20. 4. 2022, 00:05 Slovakia is waiting for the next release of measures. Minister of Health Vladimír Lengvarský confirmed that the government had abolished the obligation to wear respirators. The release will take effect on Thursday, April 21. Respirators will be mandatory only for visits and staff of social services homes and hospitals and medical facilities. Respirators and drapes will no longer be mandatory either in public transport or at mass events. The isolation of positively tested people does not change. Mandatory 5-day isolation continues to apply if one does not have symptoms for the last 24 hours. If he has symptoms, his doctor will decide to end the quarantine. After the quarantine, the person is obliged to wear a respirator for another five days. The obligation to quarantine for persons who have been in close contact with the infected person ends. However, a doctor may order isolation in specific cases. It is not mandatory to wear a respirator after the completion of preventive quarantine. Chief Hygienist Ján Mikas said that the release is possible due to the improving epidemic situation. He added that a respirator is still the simplest protection against infection and vaccination is the most effective way to protect against the severe course of COVID-19. He warns that high-risk patients should be careful and continue to wear respirators, for example in public transport. According to Mikas, it is not yet clear what the situation will be in the autumn. He wants to wait until the WHO reviews the situation and declares the coronavirus pandemic a seasonal affair. However, he admits that infected numbers may increase after release. If the situation worsens significantly during the summer, it does not rule out new restrictions. “I cannot guarantee that the epidemiological situation will not worsen in September,” the chief hygienist added. According to Mikas, only immunocompromised people should be vaccinated with the fourth dose. “Should a new vaccine emerge that is effective against multiple variants, we may consider a vaccination recommendation,” Mikas said. More than two thousand covid positives increased, and other patients succumbed to the disease