Czech Republic’s Response To The Coronavirus Pandemic: Chaotic Success Story?

Zuzana Stuchlíková wrote an article for the Robert Schuman Foundation about Czechia's response to COVID-19. The article was published as a part of the series Managing COVID-19, A Journey Through Europe.

In the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, the biggest problem was access to testing – or the lack thereof. Only people with epidemiologic anamnesis and symptoms were eligible for testing. As there was originally only one laboratory capable of processing the tests, and the waiting time for both testing and results was long, many people were deprived of access to testing by official authorities because they did not “fulfil the epidemiological criteria”, and later tested positive in private laboratories. Currently, tests are processed in hospitals; private and state-owned laboratories and “testing tents” have been set up at major hospitals. At the same time, medical vehicles are testing those who cannot reach the hospital on their own, especially elderly citizens, at their homes. Overall, more than 8,000 tests are currently being processed every day.

You can read the entire article here.

Zuzana Stuchlíková
Associate Research Fellow

Expertise: Central Europe, EU Institutions

EUROPEUM COVID-19
Publications, events and other activities concerning the pandemic and its consequences