Hanoi expands COVID-19 screening to identify risks

At a meeting of the Hanoi Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control on July 12, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Chu Xuan Dung asked the local health sector to continue to take samples for COVID-19 testing and screening in at-risk areas and establishments, focusing on those returning from provinces and cities with complicated epidemic situations such as Ho Chi Minh City and other southern provinces.

The Hanoi Department of Health was asked to tighten epidemic prevention and control at medical facilities, while preparing a plan to deploy a large-scale vaccination campaign in the shortest possible time, ensuring its effectiveness and safety.

On the same day, the Government Office issued Official Letter No. 4638/VPCP-KGVX to allow provinces and cities to pilot home isolation for close contacts of COVID-19 infections, known as F1s. The Ministry of Health requires people isolated at home to strictly abide by the regulations with the commitment of local government to ensure effective and safe isolation.

Also on July 12, a Government delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh inspected the prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic in the two provinces of Dong Nai and Ba Ria - Vung Tau. Binh urged local authorities to continue to strictly follow the direction of the Government to prevent the spread of the epidemic.

From 0:00 on July 14, Vung Tau city will implement a strict social distancing order according to Directive No. 16/CT-TTg of the Prime Minister.

The whole Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap will also be put under a social distancing order as prescribed in Directive No. 16 in 15 days, starting from 0:00 tomorrow.

This morning, Vietnam logged an additional 466 COVID-19 cases, including one imported in the southern province of Tay Ninh, as reported by the Ministry of Health.

Of them, 365 were detected in Ho Chi Minh City, 52 in Long An, 23 in Vinh Long, 12 in Dong Nai, seven in Phu Yen, five in Tay Ninh and one in Hanoi. As many as 416 cases were discovered in quarantine or locked down areas.

As of 6am on July 13, the country had recorded a total of 32,665 infections, including 30,724 domestic and 1,941 imported cases. There have been 29,154 cases since April 27 when the fourth wave of infections hit the country.

Twelve provinces have passed 14 consecutive days without any new cases in the community, including Yen Bai, Quang Tri, Tuyen Quang, Son La, Ninh Binh, Thai Nguyen, Dien Bien, Hai Duong, Phu Tho, Lao Cai, Quang Ninh and Hoa Binh.

As of the morning of July 13, 9,331 patients had recovered from the disease and 125 had died. Among the patients under treatment, 339 patients have tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once, 130 twice and 70 thrice.

On July 12, 15,901 more people were vaccinated against COVID-19, bringing the total number of administered shots to 4,063,872. Up to 280,367 people have been given two shots.