Ljubljana - An absolute daily record of 8,681 new coronavirus cases was confirmed in Slovenia on Monday as the positivity rate reached almost 63%, fresh official statistics show. The weekly increase in new cases was nearly 17%.

According to government data, 575 Covid patients are in hospitals, up nine compared to yesterday, including 155 in intensive care, three fewer than on Monday. Ten people died.

The 7-day average of daily cases increased by 501 to 6,882 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 population is up by 252 to 3,592.

The number of estimated active cases is up by 5,287 to 76,047.

Almost 45,000 new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Slovenia in the past week, the highest weekly increase by far since the start of the epidemic, and around 19,000 more than in the week before.

Still, hospitalisations remain almost level, and the number of patients in intensive care is also stable. 42 Covid-19 patients died in the past week, four fewer than a week earlier.

According to the head of the Institute for Microbiology and Immunology, Miroslav Petrovec, labs can no longer cope with this quantity of samples.

The institute accepted over 8,000 samples for PCR testing on Monday, while in the previous waves of infections no more than 3,500 needed to be analysed a day, he said in a morning talk show on public broadcaster RTV Slovenija.

Last night, 2,300 samples were left and could not be analysed. "We actually have nowhere to put the samples taken," he said.

He said that he had been striving for a while to introduce other methods for diagnostics of the infections, including rapid antigen tests. "Today certain rearrangements and restrictions will need to be introduced," he said.

According to unofficial information, the changes are to be presented at a press conference at 1pm.