The bus, carrying 59 Polish pilgrims returning from Medjugorje in Bosnia and Herzegovina, crashed around 1 a.m. on Sunday on Hungary's M3 highway near the town of Mezőkeresztes.
All 12 people killed were adults from Poland's southeastern Podkarpackie province, and authorities said on Tuesday that all victims had now been identified.
Government spokesman Adam Szłapka told reporters on Tuesday that the returning patients would be accompanied by medical teams throughout the flight.
Deputy Foreign Minister Wojciech Zajączkowski told reporters in Warsaw that 21 survivors had already been cleared to travel without risk to their health, while 17 remained hospitalized in four Hungarian cities— Nyíregyháza, Miskolc, Debrecen and Eger—with 12 of them expected to be discharged by Wednesday.
Some patients were too seriously injured to be moved yet, he said.
"We are not racing against time when it comes to bringing the injured back to Poland—the key point is their health and safety," Zajączkowski said.
He said Poland's health and defense ministries were arranging specialized transport for patients unable to travel seated.
Of those still hospitalized, two to three patients in Miskolc were in very serious condition, along with two in Eger who were serious but stable, Zajączkowski said.
Polish officials were also negotiating with Hungarian authorities to speed the return of victims' bodies.
Hungary has opened a criminal investigation into the crash, and Poland's prosecutors have asked to join that probe.
A Polish official has traveled to Hungary to help identify one victim, while the embassy in Budapest was handling translation of death certificates and other documents.
"We have asked Hungarian authorities to waive certain procedures so the bodies can be brought home as quickly as possible," Zajączkowski said, without giving a timeframe.
The bus driver, a Polish national, was detained by Hungarian police and remained under investigation by Hungarian prosecutors, a process Zajączkowski said would run in parallel with a Polish inquiry led by the District Prosecutor's Office in Krosno, southeastern Poland.
Podkarpackie province governor Teresa Kubas-Hul said on Tuesday that between 12 and 13 patients were being readied for transport, with a firm schedule expected soon.
One member of Poland's medical assistance team and a consular support group remained in Hungary to continue the response.
(jh/gs)
Source: PAP
Click on the audio player above for a report by Piotr Urbaniak