HCMC – The Ministry of Health reported 2,967 more Covid-19 cases this morning, July 22, with HCMC accounting for more than 80% of the total number.
Two of the fresh infections were imported cases while the rest were found in 18 provinces and cities nationwide, including 181 cases whose source of transmission remains unknown.
HCMC, which is now the country’s biggest coronavirus hotspot, recorded 2,433 cases. The neighboring province of Long An came second with 233, followed by Binh Duong with 64 cases, and Dong Nai with 53 cases.
The remaining cases were detected in 14 other localities including Tien Giang, Vinh Long, Hue, and Quang Binh, the last-named becoming the 61st locality to be hit by the pandemic in this fiurth wave.
Especially, Quang Binh recorded its first two locally-infected cases who had direct contact with previously confirmed cases and had been placed in quarantine earlier.
Accordingly, only the two northern mountainous provinces of Cao Bang and Lai Chau have yet to report any case in the latest outbreak.
Overall, during the fourth wave which began on April 27, the country has reported 67,422 cases, including 9,197 recoveries.
In related news, the Hanoi City government demanded that people arriving in the capital city from virus-hit regions be sent to concentrated quarantine centers starting today, instead of undergoing the mandatory 14-day home quarantine as before. This new requirement does not apply to those joining the Covid-19 fight or coming to the city upon the authorities’ request.
Hanoi has also announced its Covid-19 vaccination plan for residents aged above 18, with an aim to vaccinate over four million people. The capital city is expected to administer 200,000 doses per day.
In another development, HCMC today will launch its fifth inoculation campaign at 615 sites, with each site set to vaccinate 120 people per day.
In this campaign, HCMC was allocated over 930,000 Covid-19 vaccine doses, including 235,000 doses of the AstraZeneca and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines and nearly 55,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine. Further, people with underlying health problems and those aged over 65 are given priority to be vaccinated this time.
