Weekly COVID-19 update: Three locally transmitted cases among 23 new patients

The latest cases include one expert from Nepal and three locally-infection cases in Ho Chi Minh City. The rest are Vietnamese returnees of whom four were repatriated from the U.S., two from Japan, two from Canada, two from Russia, three from France, one from the Philippines, one from UAE, two from Germany, one from Romania, and one from Qatar.   

Over the past week, 41 patients were given all-clear, raising the total number of recoveries to 1,220. The number of death related to the disease remained at 35 while none of the current patients is in critical health condition.

As many as 15,375 people, who had come in contact with Covid-19 patients or were brought home from foreign countries and territories, are being quarantined nationwide, including 178 in hospitals, 14,319 in state-designated establishments and 878 at their residences.

In response to the mini outbreak in Ho Chi Minh City, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc issued a Directive last week, asking for strengthening Covid-19 prevention and control measures.

The Government chief tasked HCMC authorities to quickly trace down F1 and F2 cases to prevent the third wave of local infections while all passengers to Viet Nam must be put under quarantine at designated facilities.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese producers have worked to accelerate the research of Covid-19 vaccines, with Ivac, Vabiotech and Nanogen completing production process at laboratory scale and currently evaluating the vaccines’ safety and immunity in animals. Only Nanogen is now ready to pilot the first phase of human trial since December 10./.

By Kim Anh 

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