Ceca was vaccinated and had Covid but can't get green certificate: She was treated privately

Photo: CHROMORANGE / Alamy / Alamy / Profimedia

Citizens who have been treated for coronavirus in private practice cannot obtain a green certificate based on recovering from Covid because this data does not exist in the system from which it is extracted. This problem, as we have learned, could soon be solved, and at the same time, it would probably be possible to obtain Covid passes based on a negative antigen test done in a private laboratory.

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As Telegraf.rs has learned, because citizens who were treated in private practice complained to doctors in those clinics that they could not get the certificate, the doctors raised the issue with the authorities in the Government of Serbia, and this problem is expected to be solved.

"I was vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine, I received two doses when the vaccination started in Serbia. So, that vaccination is no longer valid. Since I had coronavirus at the end of August and recovered, I counted on being eligible to get the digital green certificate. I tried to obtain it and was confused. I am nowhere in the system as having had coronavirus just because it was confirmed by a private doctor and I was treated by a private doctor," Svetlana Ceca B. from Belgrade told Telegraf.rs.

She added that at first she thought that private practitioners did not report infected persons, but received a different answer from the doctor.

"According to the Law on Protection of the Population from Infectious Diseases, they are under obligation to report to the competent institutes those positive for Covid. From there, that data was sent to e-Government, but for some reason they do not display this information."

The Association of Private Health Institutions and Private Practices of Serbia has told Telegraf.rs that at the beginning of June, they launched an initiative to include their content in the digital green certificate, and the last time they did it was last week. They also state that they have not been given a deadline, but that they hope for a technical solution.

"At the beginning of June, the Association launched an initiative towards all competent institutions to introduce test data related to Covid-19 into the content of the Digital Green Certificate, issued by registered private health institutions, practices and microbiological laboratories in Serbia. After June, we reminded of the initiative on several occasions, the last time at the beginning of last week," the Association's representatives told Telegraf.rs.

They added that there are announcements that according to amendments to the regulation on measures for prevention and control of infectious disease Covid 19, a negative result of the test for detection of SARS-CoV-2 antigen, not older than 48 hours after the issuance of results by a privately owned microbiological laboratory will be included in the Digital Green Certificate.

"We have not been given a deadline, but we expect to work on a technical solution that will enable the entry of data in the Digital Green Certificate," they say in the Association.

As the Ministry of Health explained to us, work is being done on including reports from private institutions into the e-Government database.

As a reminder, it is not possible to obtain a digital green certificate based on tests, either antigen or PCR which were performed in private laboratories.

As we reported earlier, it will be possible to obtain the green Covid certificate based on a negative antigen test done in a private lab, when the Institute of Public Health of Serbia Batut issues instructions on testing for antigen detection of SARS-CoV-2, and that act is adopted.

For now, only tests done in state laboratories are valid.

The digital green certificate should contain at least one of five items - proof of receiving the second or third dose of Covid-19 vaccine confirming that the vaccination is not older than 210 days, a negative PCR test not older than 72 hours, a negative antigen test not older than 48 hours, or evidence of having had Covid in the previous 7 months, which is confirmed by a positive PCR or antigen test, or a positive IgG test not older than three months, done in a state lab.

(Telegraf.rs)