The Ministry of Public Health’s Epidemiology Department Coronavirus Bulletin #298 reports 1,179 new PCR cases for the Sunday, 10 January 2021 deadline. The 7-day nationwide average for PCR confirmed cases is 1,130, down from the previous 7-day average of 1,138.
Labs carried out 4,379 first tests, more than the 14-day average that is a low 3,873. The country can process 10,000 PCR tests a day.
The 4-week positivity rate is 19.82%, continuing the upward trend. The 24-hour positivity for the day is 26.92%, down from the previous day. The number of reported active cases is now 41,967, up from the previous day.
No new deaths are reported for the Sunday, 10 January 2021 deadline, one occurring in the previous 24 hours of the deadline.
Restrictive lockdown measures continue in place as per Decree 7-21 to contain the disease’s spread. From 11 to 26 January 2021, the curfew is from 5pm to 5am, with a three-hour transit window on Monday to Friday (to 8pm), regardless of whether the day falls on a holiday. On Saturdays 16 and 23 and Sundays 17 and 24 January 2021, the curfew starts at noon with a three-hour commute period.
Effective 11 to 26 January 2021, restaurants can open during curfew hours to 50% of their capacity and delivery is authorized until 11pm. Bars and colmadones and gyms are closed. Only those engaged in sports activities are allowed in public parks and boulevards. Sports events without public can continue. Religious events are restricted to three times a week under the health protocols in Decree 2-21.
The measures are in effect to counter the effects of increased mobility for the Christmas and New Year holidays.
Hotels and resorts continue to operate under previously established health protocols.
The Ministry of Public Health continues to mandate keeping to the preventive measures of mask-wearing, physical distancing and hand hygiene. In the cities, mask-wearing is the norm.
The Dominican Republic continues under a National State of Emergency. Congress authorized a 45-day extension starting 11 January 2021 through 26 February. Pandemic fatigue, increased mobility and home and friends’ gatherings have led to increased cases in the past month.
In December arrivals from abroad were up and the authorities cautioned those visiting family and friends to adhere to preventive measures. Tourists staying at hotels are also responsible for complying with safety protocols such as wearing masks in public spaces and keeping physical distances and hand hygiene.
By regional standards, the Dominican Republic has been relatively successful at treating Covid-19 and keeping the number of deaths low. For the 10 January 2021 deadline, Worldometer lists the 1M deaths per inhabitant rate for the Dominican Republic at 223. According to the same 1M deaths statistics, fewer people have died of Covid-19 in the Dominican Republic than in Italy at 1,311, Spain at 1,109, the United Kingdom at 1,196, the United States at 1,155, France at 1,037, Argentina at 980, Brazil at 952, Colombia at 901, Canada at 448 and Germany 497, all major markets for Dominican tourism and countries with notably better health systems.
As per Bulletin #298, with the deadline of 10 January 2021, the Ministry of Public Health has registered 183,282 confirmed cases since the first case on 1 March 2020. Partial curfew has been in place since 18 March 2020.
The number of deaths continues relatively low. As of the 10 January 2021 deadline, 2,427 persons are reported to have died of the disease in the Dominican Republic, a nation of more than 10.5 million people. The fatality rate is 1.32% over the past four weeks. This rate has been consistently dropping for the past five months. The fatality rate per 1M inhabitants is 232.28. Dominican treatment for the disease has been relatively successful in the region. The Ministry of Public Health reports that the country’s 232.28 fatality rate per 1M compares favorably to the average 1M inhabitants’ fatality rate for the Americas at 884.03.
The Ministry of Public Health report #298 indicates 46% of Covid-19 hospital beds are occupied (1,213 of 2,625 total available), an increase over the previous day. 62% of the intensive care units for Covid-19 are taken (320 of 517 beds), up from the previous day. The hospitalization statistics are for all the country. Hospitalization demand in Greater Santo Domingo, Santiago and other major cities is much higher than the national average. Reports are that present hospitalization capacity in private clinics is maxed out.
The past 14 days bulletin results are:
Bulletin #298: 183,282 confirmed cases, 1,179 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, no deaths are reported for the deadline, and none are reported happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.32%, fatality rate per 1M is 232.28.
Bulletin #297: 182,103 confirmed cases, 1,459 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, three deaths are reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.33%, fatality rate per 1M is 232.28.
Bulletin #296: 178,538 confirmed cases, 2,106 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, no deaths are reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.34%, fatality rate per 1M is 232.00.
Bulletin #295: 178,538 confirmed cases, 1,045 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, one death is reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.36%, fatality rate per 1M is 232.
Bulletin #294: 177,493 confirmed cases, 1,115 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, one death is reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.37%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.90.
Bulletin #293: 176,378 confirmed cases, 529 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, no death is reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.37%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.52.
Bulletin #292: 175,849 confirmed cases, 475 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, no death is reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.38%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.52.
Bulletin #291: 175,374 confirmed cases, 2,043 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, one death is reported for the deadline, with one happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.38%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.52.
Bulletin #290: 173,331 confirmed cases, 366 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, two deaths are reported for the deadline, with one happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.40%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.42.
Bulletin #289: 172,965 confirmed cases, 747 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, no deaths are reported for the deadline, with one happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.40%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.23.
Bulletin #288: 172,218 confirmed cases, 1,433 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, five deaths are reported for the deadline, with one happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.41%, fatality rate per 1M is 231.04.
Bulletin #287: 170,785 confirmed cases, 1,206 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, four deaths are reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.42%, fatality rate per 1M is 230.56.
Bulletin #286: 169,579 confirmed cases, 1,314 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, four deaths are reported for the deadline, with none happening in the past 24 hours. The fatality rate is 1.42%, fatality rate per 1M is 230.56.
Greater Santo Domingo continues to lead in the number of reported PCR cases. As of 10 January 2021 at 6pm, the deadline for Bulletin #298, the most confirmed cases have been reported in the National District (51,842) and the Santo Domingo province (36,776). The numbers account for around 47% of the 183,282 confirmed cases nationwide.
Other provinces with more than 500 cases are: Santiago (19,274), La Vega (7,514), La Altagracia (6,640), San Cristóbal (5,828), La Romana (5,456), Puerto Plata (5,558), Duarte (5,346), Espaillat (3,520), Monseñor Nouel (2,877), San Juan de la Maguana (2,714), Sánchez Ramírez (2,547), Barahona (2,268), Azua (2,253), San Pedro de Macoris (2,227), Maria Trinidad Sánchez (1,975), Peravia (1,620), Valverde (1,367), Hermanas Mirabal (1,356), Baoruco (1,077), Independencia (810), Santiago Rodriguez (807), Monte Plata (755), Montecristi (735), San José de Ocoa (675), Samaná (641), El Seibo (627), Pedernales (576), Dajabón (579) and Hato Mayor (555). Elías Piña province, on the border with Haiti, is the only province to register less than 500 cases. Elías Piña reports 273 cases for the 10 January 2021 deadline.
The Ministry indicates that the newest allocated cases (more than 9) reported for 10 January 2021 update deadline are: National District (369), Santo Domingo (196), Santiago (188), Espaillat (98), Puerto Plata (68), San Cristóbal (50), La Vega (40), Duarte (38), La Altagracia (33), María Trinidad Sánchez (25), Azua (22), El Seibo (15) and Sánchez Ramírez (10).
Haiti reports 10,272 confirmed cases and 238 deaths, for the 10 January 2021 deadline. Covid-related deaths in Haiti have only increased by six since 26 October 2020.
In the Americas, the Dominican Republic is now ranked 11th in confirmed cases after the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Canada, Panama and Ecuador.
Read more:
See the Ministry of Public Health epidemiological
bulletins
John Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center
University of Washington Health Data
University of Oxford Covid Tracker
Worldometer
Our World in Data
SICA
11 January 2021