Many Vietnamese people have started to relax their personal pandemic precautions at least some of the time and participate in some everyday activities again.
The country recorded 72,324 cases of Covid-19 in August 2022, an increase of 2.4 times, and 24 deaths, an increase of 18 cases compared to July 2022. In the country, cases of infection with sub-variants BA.4, BA.5, and BA.2.74 have been recorded in the community, especially the sub-variant BA.5 is dominating among the cases.
According to Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen, in the current new normal period, agencies and enterprises have resumed operations, and schools have reopened. Therefore, the health sector needs to have regulations and guidelines in line with reality, including the 5K regulation, to avoid the situation in which regulations cannot be applicable.
Because patients have experienced great difficulty in accessing the purchase of Covid-19 oral pill Molnupiravir even though this drug has been produced domestically and circulated on the market, the Ministry of Health has recently proposed more open regulations to help Covid-19 patients soon get the pill.
According to Chief of Office of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health Nguyen Thi Huynh Mai, the city Steering Committee for Epidemic Prevention and Economic Recovery is working with the Department of Health to closely monitor the epidemic situation in the city trying to overcome the peak of coronavirus wave in the next two weeks.
In recent days, the number of Covid-19 cases in Ho Chi Minh City has continuously increased, mainly due to the Omicron variant. Experts said that this new wave of the coronavirus pandemic is more like seasonal flu; city administrations determine to live with the Omicron variant.
The Southeast Asian country has 45 provinces and cities that have been classed as green zones and the country has no more high-risk coronavirus alert areas.
The city has to carry out preparedness planning for field hospitals to receive and care for children with Covid-19. The campaign caring for those at high risk from the virus should include children who can't protect themselves from the illness, said Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen.
It was recorded that from February 10 to 17, out of 92 samples sent to the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU) and the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Ho Chi Minh City, 70 had positive PCR results with the Omicron variant, accounting for 76 percent.
The Ho Chi Minh City Center for Disease Control (HCDC), on February 20, informed that it had just detected a new cluster of Covid-19 cases at a monastery in Go Vap District. The health sector quickly implemented infection control measures, notifying students for epidemiological investigation and testing.
Medical experts have called for continued vigilance for coronavirus disease in children because many cases of children infected with Covid-19 have gone on to develop severe and critical.
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health yesterday said that the city is closely monitoring arrivals from foreign countries in isolation at home to prevent infection of the Omicron variant.
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health yesterday reported that five new cases of Omicron variant were detected in the community through taking random samples for testing of 72 SARS-CoV-2 infections at hospitals from January 31 to February 7.
The Department of Health in Ho Chi Minh City has made a proposal for the extension of isolation types for people entering Vietnam from foreign countries who have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh assigned the Ministry of Public Security to coordinate with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Information and Communications to unify the use of only one medical declaration application, so as not to cause traffic jams at the Noi Bai International Airport.
The central city of Da Nang so far recorded three infection cases related to Omicron variant, who were among four Covid-19 cases detected on two flights to Da Nang from Malaysia on December 23-24, reported Director of the municipal Center for Disease Control Ton That Thanh on January 11.
Amid the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, while the airline was restricted, the waterway into Ho Chi Minh City remained open. During that difficult period, the port border guard force of the city always stayed proactive and watchful, creating a steel shield, successfully preventing the intrusion of the Delta variant of Covid-19. It is a prerequisite for city border guards to be confident and continue to raise alertness against the Omicron variant.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Health sent a dispatch to several responsible agencies guiding how to treat 14 cases of Omicron variant in the Central City of Da Nang.