26.01.21 NEWS ... A recent coronavirus outbreak in Valga County has pushed the region's infection rate to the second highest in Estonia but the mayor of Otepää is appealing to the government to not create additional restrictions.

26.01.21 NEWS ... Estonia's infection rate has reached a plateau but not fallen, member of the government's advisory council and mathematician Krista Fischer has said. Deaths related to coronavirus are also higher than expected.

26.01.21 NEWS ... Over the last week of vaccinations in Estonia, 71 side effects were reported with 70 of them coming from Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines. Two of the reported side effects were considered serious, but people made full recoveries.

26.01.21 NEWS ... The government's scientific advisory council is to recommend coronavirus restrictions are harmonized across the country, head of the council virology professor Irja Lutsar said on Tuesday. Additional details have not yet been clarified.

26.01.21 NEWS ... Regardless of the government's decision to allow schools back to contact classes from Monday (January 25) there are some 100 schools across Estonia still remaining on distance learning.

26.01.21 NEWS ... 357 new coronavirus cases have been found in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) announced. Nine deaths were also recorded since Monday morning.

26.01.21 NEWS ... Last week 3,637 cases of coronavirus were diagnosed in Estonia compared to 3,543 cases the week before. There were 50 deaths which is a new record.

25.01.21 NEWS ... Seven people died after becoming infected with coronavirus and 259 new cases were diagnosed in the last day, the Health Board said on Monday.

25.01.21 NEWS ... The PCR tests currently used to test people for COVID-19 requiring a medical professional, are time-consuming and can be inconvenient. The counterweight however is high accuracy, which might not be so important in all cases.

25.01.21 NEWS ... Although the government allowed all schools in Estonia to return to contact classes starting Monday, Narva City Government decided to keep grades 5-8 and 10-11 in municipal schools on distance learning as the COVID-19 infection rate in the city still remains high.

24.01.21 NEWS ... Data from the Health Board suggests 4,568 tests for the SARS-CoV-2 virus were carried out in the last 24 hours of which 532 or 11,6 percent came back positive.

24.01.21 NEWS ... Over 120 residents and staff of the Paju nursing home in Valga County have been infected with the coronavirus. Despite the extent of the outbreak, some patients are on the way to recovery and the care center is managing under its own steam.

23.01.21 NEWS ... Reform Party MEP Urmas Paet and former foreign minister has joined the Estonian government's criticism of its Finnish counterpart's decision to restrict entry to the country from next Wednesday, amid fears of more potent strains of the coronavirus.

23.01.21 NEWS ... All frontline hospital workers who have requested vaccination against COVID-19 have been at least partly-vaccinated, meaning they have received the first shot, the social affairs ministry says. However, this should not be taken to mean full coverage of healthcare staff is anywhere near to complete, Baltic News Service reports.

23.01.21 NEWS ... CEO of shipping line Tallink says that proposals to amend travel restrictions imposed by the Finnish government will include the requirement of providing proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test result.

23.01.21 NEWS ... Higher education institutions in Estonia are to start the spring semester using remote, online learning, for the most part, ETV news show "Aktuaalne kaamera" (AK) reported Friday night.

23.01.21 NEWS ... 487 new coronavirus cases have been detected in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) says. Ten people who had COVID-19 have died during that time.

23.01.21 NEWS ... From Monday, January 25, travelers from Bulgaria, Finland, Greece, Iceland and Norway do not need to quarantine on arrival from Estonia. Arrivals from all other European nations still need to quarantine, for 10 days, or 14 days in the case of the United Kingdom.

23.01.21 NEWS ... Outgoing foreign minister Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) has criticized a move by the government of Estonia's northern neighbor, Finland, in reinstating tougher border restrictions similar to those imposed in spring last year.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Results from this week's sewage monitoring study show the spread of coronavirus is widespread across Estonia and compared to recent weeks the level has remained stable.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Over the last week, the infection rates in the Latvia and Estonia countries have stabilized while Lithuania's has fallen. Portugal's rate has risen to become the highest in Europe, data shows.

22.01.21 NEWS ... According to data from the Estonian Motor Insurance Bureau (LKF), there were 29,700 motor insurance cases in Estonia in 2020, 6,400 less than the year prior. The average annual insurance payment was €114, dropping from €133 the year before.

22.01.21 NEWS ... The Labor Inspectorate has said employers can require their staff to be vaccinated against coronavirus and, in exceptional circumstances, terminate a contract if an employee is not vaccinated. This is possible because an employer can list a vaccination as a mandatory qualification for a position.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Jüri Ratas (Center) expressed concern about coronavirus vaccine procurement to European Union leaders Thursday evening, particularly about the security of supply on the part of private sector suppliers.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Ministry of Defense representatives fear the recession stemming from the coronavirus crisis could begin to damage Estonia's defense capabilities if the rate of defense costs in the country's gross domestic product (GDP) dips below the current rate of 2 percent.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Finland's interior ministry plans to close the country's borders to all but the most essential foreign workers, Finnish media reports, as a safeguard against more virulent strains of the coronavirus finding their way into the country, including those reported in the media as being identified in the United Kingdom and South Africa.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Four people infected with coronavirus died and 490 new cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in the last day, the Health Board said on Friday.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Outgoing Prime Minister Jüri Ratas (Center) suggested to his Finnish counterpart Sanna Marin that coronavirus testing on cross-channel ferries between the two countries should be made more efficient, with data-sharing stepped up as well.

22.01.21 NEWS ... Outgoing Minister of Social Affairs Tanel Kiik (Center) said that harmonizing the restrictions established on Harju and Ida-Viru County with the remaining 13 counties will be for the new government to decide.

21.01.21 NEWS ... Based on the data of the Ministry of Social Affairs, in total 10,950 doses of both Pfizer/BioNtech and Moderna vaccines, should arrive in Estonia next week.

21.01.21 NEWS ... Outgoing Prime Minister Jüri Ratas (Center Party) said on Thursday that the government is working on additional restrictions in 13 counties and that financial compensation discussions are ongoing.

21.01.21 NEWS ... An autopsy conducted on Tallinn Zoo's male asiatic lion Juna, who was put to sleep on January 13 after renal failure, uncovered that the feline was carrying the coronavirus.

21.01.21 NEWS ... Ministry of Social Affairs Deputy Secretary General Maris Jesse has hit out at the head of Valga Hospital's actions in offering coronavirus vaccines on a preferential basis to fellow members of humanitarian development society Rotary International.

21.01.21 NEWS ... 669 new coronavirus cases have been found in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) announced. Five deaths were also recorded since Wednesday morning.

20.01.21 NEWS ... The over 80s and those in their 70s with underlying health conditions will be the first risk groups to be vaccinated at family health centers in February under new plans put forward by the Ministry of Social Affairs and the immunoprophylactic expert committee.

20.01.21 NEWS ... Leader of the Belarusian opposition Svetlana Tikhanovskaya will visit Estonia on Friday (January 22), Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) said on Wednesday.

20.01.21 NEWS ... A 24-hour coronavirus (COVID-19) testing center has been opened at the Estonian-Russian border checkpoint for arrivals from Russia.

20.01.21 NEWS ... Five people infected with coronavirus died and 603 new cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in the last 24 hours, the Health Board said on Wednesday.

20.01.21 NEWS ... Mayor of Pärnu Romek Kosenkranius said on Tuesday ( January 19) that the morbidity per 100,000 inhabitants in Pärnu County in the last two weeks has risen above the Estonian average.

20.01.21 NEWS ... While the overall number of new coronavirus cases had not increased in recent weeks, there are still a high number of cases and the situation remains serious, Deputy Director General of the Health Board Mari-Anne Härma said on Wednesday.

20.01.21 NEWS ... There has been a rise in the number of people who do not change their behavior after possible contact with an infected person, the University of Tartu's study on the prevalence of coronavirus reveals.

20.01.21 NEWS ... The head of Valga Hospital in South Estonia has been trying to give preferential treatment to members of international ethical and humanitarian service organization Rotary International in administering coronavirus vaccines at the hospital he manages. The Tartu branch of Rotary International, known informally as the Rotary Club refused his approach, which comprised vaccinations sufficient for around a dozen potential individuals, Baltic News Service reports.

20.01.21 NEWS ... Estonia's coronavirus infection rate - known as R - has fallen below 1, Prime Minister Jüri Ratas said (Center) after a meeting with the government's scientific advisory council on Tuesday. The rate is currently between 0.9 and 0.95.

19.01.21 NEWS ... Estonian alcohol industry lobby groups have welcomed a proposed 'tax peace' put on the table in ongoing coalition discussions between the Reform and Center parties as a way to normalize a sector hit by the coronavirus crisis.

19.01.21 NEWS ... More than 400 people have received a second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in Estonia, the Health Board said on Tuesday. For the vaccine to offer immunity, two doses 21 days apart need to be administered.

19.01.21 NEWS ... Forty-two residents of the remote Estonian island of Ruhnu have received coronavirus vaccines, ETV news show "Aktuaalne kaamera" (AK) reported Monday night.

19.01.21 NEWS ... University of Tartu virologist Andres Merits said that the 19,000 people who are vaccinated and the nearly 38,000, who are known to have carried the coronavirus at some point, must still wear masks when moving around in public places.

19.01.21 NEWS ... Outgoing Minister of Culture Tõnis Lukas (Isamaa) wrote in a proposal to the Ministry of Social Affairs that the ministry should also consider athletes when drawing up vaccination schedules. Lukas would see athletes vaccinated after health care and frontline workers.

19.01.21 NEWS ... Two more members of the Isamaa Party have tested positive for the coronavirus, in addition to the four diagnosed on Monday. Another three advisers have also fallen ill, according to party spokesperson Karl-Sander Kase.

19.01.21 NEWS ... 600 new coronavirus cases have been found in Estonia in the past 24 hours, the Health Board (Terviseamet) announced. 11 deaths were also recorded since Monday morning.