Health minister expects epidemic will peak at the turn of January-February

The current wave of the coronavirus epidemic, caused by the omicron mutation, will peak in the Czech Republic between the last week of January and the first week of February, according to Health Minister Vlastimil Válek.

Mr Válek warned that the low numbers of cases currently being detected in the Czech Republic are “the quiet before the storm” and that the omicron variant has already reached the stage of community spread in several of the country’s regions.

This Thursday, he is meeting with experts to discuss shortening self-isolation and quarantine periods, as well as the interval between recovering from the disease and getting vaccinated. The expert recommendations will then be discussed by the government with the Health Ministry issuing new measures next week.