Covid test orders overflow labs
The Minister of Health said that the National Laboratory has enough evidence and more will arrive, so they are willing to release it.
Doris Pantaleón / Deyanira Polanco
Santo Domingo, RD
The Minister of Public Health, Dr. Plutarco Arias, admitted yesterday that as a result of the high demand for tests for the diagnosis of Covid-19, in the private sector laboratories there are not enough supplies to perform them.
He indicated that with the increase in cases in the last two weeks there are many people who are being tested to determine if they have Covid-19, so he called for good sense.
The official called on the population to only undergo a Covid test when necessary, "not when they feel like it", because that limits the capacity of the laboratories.
He noted that derivatives are expensive and difficult to obtain, so people should only be tested when necessary, citing cases of people doing it up to five times.
"We have tests in the National Laboratory and a good amount is going to arrive," after expressing that if they have to make it available to the private sector, they will.
The minister, who has already experienced the onslaught of the coronavirus, called on the population to "not lower their guard," stay two meters away, wear a mask and wash their hands frequently.
He asked the neighborhood councils, provincial governments and city councils to join the campaign to raise awareness and prevent the coronavirus.
The minister spoke at the launch of the Christmas and New Year operation coordinated by the Emergency Operations Center (COE).
Last Tuesday, the Health Cabinet headed by Vice President Raquel Peña announced that to counteract the rise in contagion, the government will increase the number of diagnostic tests and supply hospital centers with drugs.
More infections and deaths
Although the Dominican Republic registers a relatively low fatality rate from COVID-19, placed yesterday at 1.51%, the system registers new deaths every day, reporting five new deaths in the last 24 hours for a cumulative 2,372.
Meanwhile, 788 new positive cases of COVID were also captured, raising the accumulated numbers of infected to 156,585, of which 32,225 appear in the system as active cases, that is, of patients who are positive for the virus.
The occupation of beds, an indicator that generates concern among specialists and authorities, also continues to register high figures. Epidemiological report 272 issued yesterday notifies 235 patients admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICU) for an occupation of 51% of the available beds.
Of the total number of patients in critical conditions due to COVID, some 124 were yesterday using ventilators for an occupation of 34% of the equipment destined for patients with the virus nationwide, while in hospital beds for intermediate care the admission of patients was 833 for an occupancy of 33%.
18.94% positivity
Yesterday 7,195 laboratory samples were processed for diagnosis of the COVID virus, of which 788 were positive for a daily positivity rate of 18.94% and of the last four weeks in 13.01% with an upward trend.
Among young people
When publishing the daily report of the behavior of the virus in the national territory, the Ministry of Public Health urged the population to reinforce preventive measures, since if citizen mobility is not limited and physical distancing is met , the cases will continue to rise.
In the last four weeks, infections have been on the rise, which the health authorities attribute to the crowding, mainly by young people, who are the population segment that is experiencing the incidence of coronavirus.
Until yesterday, the total of evidence processed in the country amounted to 801,531. Per million inhabitants, 76,713 laboratory samples have been processed to confirm or rule out the virus.
Meanwhile, 121, 988 people have recovered from the virus and those discarded by laboratory tests total 644,946. Mortality per million inhabitants is 227.02.
Risk groups
Some 572 healthcare workers have tested positive for the disease to date. While the number of pregnant women affected is 294 and 15,362 children under 20 years of age have been infected with the virus.
Payment of fines for violating curfew
The Attorney General's Office reported yesterday that it has exhausted a technical process that will allow people to automatically pay fines for violating the curfew.
He reported that he reviews the digital interaction mechanisms to establish payments through electronic transfers.
Ministro de Salud dijo que en el Laboratorio Nacional tienen pruebas suficientes y llegarán más, por lo que están dispuestos a cederlas.
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