COVID-19 pandemic

Countries return to the negotiating table on Monday for one last push on concluding a pandemic agreement, now in slimmed-down form with some of the thorniest aspects stripped out and shelved.

In a recent interview with BTA, Associate Professor Angel Kunchev, the chief state health inspector, addressed the potential declaration of an epidemic of whooping cough and outlined the measures that would be taken in response.

Data from a recent global poll conducted by the world association "Gallup International" represent the diverse perceptions surrounding the threat posed by the coronavirus pandemic. The survey, conducted between October and December 2023 across 44 countries, revealed that nearly half of the respondents, totaling 45%, believe that the threat of the coronavirus has been exaggerated.

The pandemic and the energy crisis gave Greek companies an opportunity to significantly increase their profit margins.

The phenomenon of profit inflation or "greedflation" was seen internationally in the period 2021-2022, but it assumed large dimensions in Greece due to the country comparatively small market, which is prone to a lack of sufficient competition.

Over the weekend, Turkish movie theaters experienced their lowest attendance since the coronavirus pandemic, with only 100,254 spectators between the dates of March 29 and 31, coinciding with the local elections.

The bans were implemented at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics due to the coronavirus epidemic

Nearly 7,000 excess deaths from tuberculosis occurred in the WHO European Region in the three years of the pandemic from 2020 - 2022, compared to what experts had expected based on pre-2020 estimates. This increased mortality was a direct result of the pandemic and would not have occurred if TB diagnosis and treatment efforts had not been disrupted during the pandemic.

Eurostat's latest data unveiled a promising trend in the European Union's tourism sector, indicating a robust recovery from the shadows cast by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the report released on Friday, the total number of nights spent in tourist accommodations across the EU soared to nearly 3 billion in 2023.

After four years, Evangelismos Hospital in downtown Athens operates without any Covid-19 cases, hospital director and board president Anastasios Grigoropoulos announced on social media on Thursday.

Grigoropoulos described the development as "hopeful," but cautioned against premature optimism regarding the pandemic's end.

Last year was a record year for Greek tourism, with the latest statistics showing a remarkable comeback for the sector from the years of lockdowns during the pandemic.

While these trends are welcome, there are also some worrying signs, as 2023 saw an increasing use of the term "over tourism".