HCMC – Vietnam’s Covid caseload in the fourth wave has reached 1,050,185 as the Ministry of Health reported 9,849 new cases today, November 17, up 198 cases day-on-day.
Of the new infections, 10 were imported and 9,839 were locally infected, detected in 56 cities and provinces.
Among the domestic cases, HCMC accounted for the highest number at 1,337, followed by Dong Nai with 664, Binh Duong with 601, An Giang with 527 and Tien Giang with 526.
Moreover, 489 cases each were reported in Binh Thuan and Dong Thap, 428 in Ba Ria-Vung Tau, 396 in Kien Giang, 376 in Tay Ninh, 364 in Soc Trang and 323 in Bac Lieu.
Vinh Long, Ca Mau, Hanoi and Binh Phuoc reported over 200 infections each. The remainder were detected in other localities.
Today, 3,873 coronavirus patients were discharged from hospitals, raising the country’s total recoveries in the current fourth wave to 872,053.
The Ministry of Health also confirmed 67 Covid-19 deaths today, including 26 in HCMC, 12 in Binh Duong, seven in An Giang, and four each in Tay Ninh and Long An. Eight other localities had one to two Covid deaths each.
The Ministry of Health has asked the Departments of Health of cities and provinces to accelerate the Covid-19 vaccination as nine localities still had a vaccine coverage rate of less than 70% each as of November 14.
Five provinces with the lowest vaccination rates included Son La (45.5%), Thanh Hoa (50.6%), Nam Dinh (58.2%), Nghe An (60%) and Cao Bang (63.2%). Leaders of these provinces complained that the vaccines distributed by the Ministry of Health failed to meet their demands.
Khuong Thanh Vinh, deputy director of the Nam Dinh Department of Health, said the province was one of the 10 provinces receiving the least Covid-19 vaccines. The province can administer 60,000-70,000 doses per day but it had no dose some days.
The department has been recently informed that it would be allocated more Covid-19 vaccines but the vaccines have yet to arrive in Nam Dinh.
Do Duc Luu, director of the provincial Center for Disease Control (CDC), shared the view, saying that if the vaccines were allocated sufficiently, the province could administer the first doses to over 94% of its adults by November 25.
The Ministry of Health had earlier decided to allocate some 1.3 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to Nam Dinh but the province has received only 900,000 doses. It needs nearly three million doses to fully vaccinate all of its residents.
Facing the same fate, Thanh Hoa has administered more than 1.8 million vaccine doses and lacked 1.2 million doses, said provincial vice chairman Dau Thanh Tung.
He added that the allocated vaccines were not enough for the province’s population. By the end of this month, the province will ensure the vaccination rate if it receives sufficient vaccines.
Son La and Nghe An provinces have also complained about the shortage of Covid-19 vaccines.
Director of the Son La CDC Nguyen Tien Dung said Son La was among the 10 provinces with the fastest vaccination rates. However, its vaccine coverage rate remained low due to the small Covid-19 vaccine volume distributed by the Ministry of Health.
The province has been provided with over 591,000 doses, while it needs nearly 1.6 million doses.
Meanwhile, Duong Dinh Chinh, director of the Nghe An Department of Health, said the province had administered the allocated vaccines at the fastest possible pace. The province has been allocated over 1.9 million Covid-19 vaccine doses.
