Slovakia celebrated Halloween with long queues and millions of nasal swabs. What's next?

After initial concerns, everyone who wanted to could get tested in Slovakia over the past weekend. It is too early to say if the mass testing is a success story and will help the country avoid a lockdown.

The testing in Bratislava on October 31, 2020.The testing in Bratislava on October 31, 2020. (Source: SME)

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Slovakia is the only country in the western world that has carried out mass testing of its entire population. For one weekend, the country was turned into a lab not just for epidemiologists, virologists and data analysts, but also for sociologists and even political scientists. What the results mean and whether or not they can help the country avoid a hard lockdown is yet to be seen.

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Rushed operation had many worried

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Top stories

Stock image.

Twice as many Ukrainians work in Slovakia now than before the Russian invasion.


Píšem or pišám?

"Do ľava," (to the left) I yelled, "Nie, do prava" (no, to the right), I gasped. "Dolšie," I screamed. "Nie, nie, horšie..." My Slovak girlfriend collapsed in laughter. Was it something I said?


Matthew J. Reynolds
Czech biochemist Jan Konvalinka.

Jan Konvalinka was expecting a pandemic before Covid-19 came along.


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