Medics work at the intensive care unit at Pirogov, Sofias main emergency hospital, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. Medics at Bulgaria's main emergency hospital are fighting an uneven battle with the spread of the coronavirus as a new surge in cases has left its ailing health care system overwhelmed. Georgiev blamed the surge in infections on the widespread vaccine skepticism among Bulgarians, who have turned the country into the EU's least vaccinated nation. (AP Photo Valentina Petrova)Medics work at the intensive care unit of the Emergency University Hospital Pirogov, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. Medics at Bulgaria's main emergency hospital are fighting an uneven battle with the spread of the coronavirus as a new surge in cases has left its ailing health care system overwhelmed. On Friday, more than 7,553 people were in COVID wards, including 656 of them in intensive care. More than 90% of the patients were not vaccinated, data showed. (AP Photo Valentina Petrova)Georgi Georgiev, head of the intensive care unit at Pirogov, Sofias main emergency hospital, prepares for work, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. Medics at Bulgaria's main emergency hospital are fighting an uneven battle with the spread of the coronavirus as a new surge in cases has left its ailing health care system overwhelmed. Georgiev blamed the surge in infections on the widespread vaccine skepticism among Bulgarians, who have turned the country into the EU's least vaccinated nation. (AP Photo Valentina Petrova)Georgi Georgiev, head of the intensive care unit at Pirogov, Sofias main emergency hospital, prepares for work, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. Medics at Bulgaria's main emergency hospital are fighting an uneven battle with the spread of the coronavirus as a new surge in cases has left its ailing health care system overwhelmed. Georgiev blamed the surge in infections on the widespread vaccine skepticism among Bulgarians, who have turned the country into the EU's least vaccinated nation. (AP Photo Valentina Petrova)
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Medics work at the intensive care unit at Pirogov, Sofias main emergency hospital, in Sofia, Bulgaria, Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. Medics at Bulgaria's main emergency hospital are fighting an uneven battle with the spread of the coronavirus as a new surge in cases has left its ailing health care system overwhelmed. Georgiev blamed the surge in infections on the widespread vaccine skepticism among Bulgarians, who have turned the country into the EU's least vaccinated nation. (AP Photo Valentina Petrova)
SOFIA – Bulgaria had 334 COVID-19 patients die in a single day in its count Tuesday, the country's highest daily toll since the start of the pandemic.
Bulgarian health authorities also reported 5,286 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus over the past 24 hours. It has 8,516 COVID-19 patients who are hospitalized, 723 of them in intensive care.
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The Balkan country of 7 million remains the least vaccinated in the 27-nation European Union, with less than one-third of its adults fully vaccinated.
Despite rising virus-related deaths, many Bulgarians remain skeptical of vaccines, due to unfounded fears of potential health damage, superstition or conspiracy theories. Many people also mistrust official information.
Ahead of Bulgaria's Nov. 14 parliamentary and presidential elections, authorities have been widely hesitant to impose stricter measures to contain the spread of the virus.
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