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Philippines

Czechs to drop Covid pass despite infection spike

Philippines

Czechs to drop Covid pass despite infection spike

By Agence France-Presse

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Czechs will no longer have to submit vaccination certificates at restaurants, cultural and sports events from next week despite a spike in coronavirus infections, the prime minister said Wednesday.

Since November 2021, only vaccinated Czechs and those who have had Covid-19 in the last six months have been allowed access to bars, restaurants, hotels, and other services.

"The government will cancel the requirement to show a vaccination certificate or proof of recovery when entering restaurants, services, cultural, sports, and similar events as of February 9," Prime Minister Petr Fiala told reporters.

He added Czechs would still have to wear face masks indoors and the number of participants in mass events would be limited.

An EU member of 10.7 million people, the Czech Republic reported a record-high daily caseload of 57,195 infections on Tuesday as the highly contagious Omicron strain prevails in the country.

The increase brought the total tally of confirmed cases since the Covid-19 outbreak in early 2020 to 3.1 million with over 37,000 deaths.

But only 2,653 people were in hospital with the illness on Tuesday, far less than during a peak of more than 9,500 in March 2021.

The Czech Republic in early 2021 and again last autumn topped AFP's global tally of Covid-19 infections and deaths per capita.

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