With a total of 13,714 COVID-19 patients out of whom 1,456 under intensive care, Romania's health care system reached its limits, as the local authorities were set to allow part of the hospitals to function for non-COVID-19 patients.

Although the Government keeps assuring that there will be no supplementary restrictions in the period of the Orthodox Easter, the situation is visibly deteriorating despite the decent pace of vaccination.

Notably, the minister of education Sorin Cimpeanu deferred by one month the deadline for allowing all pupils to return to their classrooms - to the end of May, or early June, provided the necessary tests are purchased.

More resources will be dedicated to COVID-19 patients, minister of health Vlad Voiculescu announced, quoted by News.ro.

Non-COVID-19 emergency cases will be served by hospitals that did not use to deal with such cases, such as to free the regular emergency services to dedicate to COVID-19 cases fully, he announced.

Separately, regarding the number of intensive care beds, hospitals from the structures of the ministries of interior, defense, and transport will be turned into COVID-19 hospitals.

Vlad Voiculescu also spoke of the measure of concentrating all resources for the COVID-19 patients, which he said was the "requirement of the moment."

(Photo: Octav Ganea/ Inquam Photos)

andrei@romania-insider.com