HCMC – Among the 91 news domestic Covid-19 cases that the Ministry of Health reported this morning, June 16, up to 61 cases were in the northern province of Bac Giang, which is also the country’s largest Covid-19 hotspot.
HCMC came next with 19 cases, followed by Bac Ninh with nine and Ha Tinh with two.
Up to 90 cases were detected at quarantine centers and in areas under lockdown.
In addition, the Ministry of Health confirmed an imported case in HCMC who is a Japanese expert. He is being treated at the Can Gio Covid-19 Treatment Hospital.
Up to now, the country has recorded 9,657 domestic infections and 1,647 imported cases. The number of new cases in the latest coronavirus wave since April 27 was 8,087.
As for the cases in HCMC, 13 were in close contact with other patients, five were linked to the Revival Ekklesia Mission while the infection source of another is being investigated.
The latest Covid-19 wave has lasted for over 1.5 months and the number of new cases in the wave has tripled that in the three previous waves.
On June 15, an additional 95,400 local residents were injected with the Covid-19 vaccine, raising the total number of vaccinated people to nearly 1.65 million people, including nearly 64,000 people having got two shots.
On the same day, the government of Binh Chanh Commune in HCMC’s Binh Chanh District reported that an employee of the Binh Tan District Medical Center’s testing unit had tested positive for Covid-19 after taking samples from residents in pandemic-hit areas for at least 15 times.
She was later transported to the Cu Chi Covid-19 Treatment Hospital in Cu Chi District for treatment.
Some pandemic-hit areas to which she had come for work included the Nam Long residential area, PouYuen Vietnam Co., Ltd, and the Tecco apartment building.
She took her samples twice on June 6 and 15. The result of the second sample testing was positive, while she reported no symptoms of Covid-19.
According to an epidemiological investigation, she had close contact with six people, including her family members and colleagues.
Associate Professor Dr Tang Chi Thuong, deputy director of the HCMC Department of Health, said the city had mobilized more than 3,000 medical workers from 48 public hospitals and over 500 students of the Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine to take samples for Covid-19 testing.
On June 15, the municipal government wrote to the Ton Duc Thang University, the HCMC University of Technology and the Sai Gon University, asking for approval to requisition their dormitories as concentrated quarantine centers.
The move was made following the municipal Department of Health’s proposal. According to the department, these universities’ dormitories have adequate facilities to serve the quarantine purpose.
On the same day, the municipal government also asked districts to ensure that concentrated quarantine centers have at least 200 beds each and those in Thu Duc must have at least 600 beds each. They must regularly check the compliance of anti-pandemic regulations at such quarantine centers and impose sanctions on heads of these centers if violations are found.
