THERE could be up to 150,000 unreported Covid-19 cases in Ho Chi Minh City as cases detected through rapid tests were not included in official tallies.
The city’s Department of Health has proposed that the Health Ministry update the national Covid-19 monitoring system as only results from RT-PCR tests are included in the tally.
According to a Saigon Times report, the huge number of positive cases were found after the city started conducting rapid tests since Aug 20.
The city health department also proposed the ministry allow it to officially confirm Covid-19 cases through rapid antigen testing.
The proposal comes after Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Truong Son recently said people who are required to undergo home quarantine after being found infected with Covid-19 through rapid testing are considered as Covid-19 patients and are eligible to receive medication bags from health authorities.
If the 150,000 positive cases are recognised by the ministry, this will push the city’s caseload to over 522,000, up by about 40 per cent.
A representative of the city’s Department of Health said that the 150,000 positive cases were being monitored and had received medication bags.
The official said the huge number of positive cases found through rapid tests made it hard for them to conduct PCR tests for all of them as the city was struggling with a strong spike in daily cases.
Meanwhile, the Vn Express reports that Ho Chi Minh City has also asked for changes on methods used to evaluate its coronavirus fight.
The city said they cannot only rely on new community transmission cases and also called for adjustments to vaccination rate thresholds.
Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee deputy chairman Duong Anh Duc told the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control that more parameters can be used, such as the number of beds with ventilators or the number of vaccinated people across different age ranges.
The call for changes came after the Health Ministry proposed that the criteria used to evaluate adaptability to the coronavirus include vaccination rate and availability of medical equipment and infrastructure.
It had said that at least 80 per cent of people aged above 50 must be fully vaccinated, all local medical facilities must have oxygen canisters, mobile medical stations and groups to care for coronavirus cases.
There must also be a multi-level Covid-19 treatment structure that ensures the number of ICU beds amounts to at least two per cent of the highest anticipated number of infections.
However, the city requested adjustments, such as the vaccination rate requirement to either at least 80 per cent of people aged above 65, or at least 50 per cent of people above 50, being fully vaccinated.
The city also wants people who recovered from the coronavirus, having developed antibodies against the virus within six months since their recoveries, to be counted as fully vaccinated individuals.
The city said the number of new community transmission cases might be a good indicator for localities where Covid-19 has yet to take hold, but would not be as effective for areas where the virus has already infiltrated deep within the community.
It proposed that this should be switched to the number of severe Covid-19 cases and deaths instead.
The city also proposed not to put close contacts of coronavirus cases into centralised quarantine to reduce the chance of cross-infection and at the same time relieve financial burdens on both the people and local authorities.
Other proposals include new and adjusted requirements regarding the minimum number of ICU beds with ventilators and oxygen canisters.
Previously, the city’s People’s Committee chairman Phan Van Mai had proposed to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to allow Ho Chi Minh City to apply its own policies to reopen its economy.
He had also requested the prime minister prioritise vaccination for the city and the southern key.
He had also requested the prime minister prioritise vaccination for the city and the southern key economic region.
Ho Chi Minh City is the epicentre of the fourth coronavirus wave in Vietnam, with over 370,000 local Covid-19 cases and 14,200 deaths.
The city has vaccinated about 6.8 million people, or nearly 98 per cent of its adult population, with at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose.
Around 2.7 million people, or 38 per cent, have been fully vaccinated.
Source: New Straits Times
