This week’s Covid-19 round-up
In this week’s Covid-19 round-up, we look at South Africa’s vaccine roll-out and the status of infections in the country.
As Covid-19 cases in South Africa continue to rise and vaccine hesitancy remains a concern, government is appealing to people over the age of 18 to get vaccinated as a matter of urgency.
The debate on whether or not to get vaccinated against Covid-19 has been the talk of the country – and indeed the world – for many months. This week, the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority and the National Immunisation Safety Expert Committee (Nisec) reassured the public that both the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are safe to use.
Nisec member Prof Hannelie Meyer said on Wednesday (August 18) that current data suggests less than 10% of those who get vaccinated will experience adverse events, such as headaches, fever, and chills.
Read more here: SAHPRA confirms Covid-19 vaccines are safe to use
During a virtual Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, it was announced that those between the ages of 18 and 34 would be able to go for their jabs from today (August 20), as part of increasing the vaccination roll-out programme.
Here are the options for registration #vaccination #VaccinationRollOutSA #COVID19 #18to34 pic.twitter.com/PT2AAtUoGt
— National Department of Health (@HealthZA) August 19, 2021
This week, KwaZulu-Natal premier Sihle Zikalala confirmed that the province has officially entered its third wave. Zikalala said the number of hospitalisations is also increasing steadily in both public and private health facilities, with some facilities reporting extremely high occupancy rates in ICU beds.
Read more here: Covid-19 cases rise as KZN enters third wave
As of August 19, 13 672 new Covid-19 cases had been identified in South Africa, which brought the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 2 652 652. This increase represents a 19,9% positivity rate.
The National Department of Health reported a further 317 Covid-19-related deaths, which brought the total fatalities to 78 694 to date.
The total number of Covid-19 vaccines administered in the country stood at 10 167 749, with 191 806 jabs administered in the past 24-hours.
To see more on the latest vaccine statistics in the country, visit the Government’s public dashboard by clicking here.
*Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news
Dear reader,
As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19. Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).
