Guyana continues to record a downward trend in COVID-19 cases with just about 420 active cases currently across the country.
Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony, M.P, during Thursday’s COVID-19 update said areas known as “hotspots” no longer exist. These areas were identified as communities with over 100 positive cases. Given the latest figures, these numbers have dropped significantly.
“Given the level of infection that we now have, it is not what we used to call hotspots where we were seeing maybe more than 100 cases in some areas. So, a lot of the places that we have now they probably got like six, five, four, so it’s not that many, but we will continue to monitor,” the minister said.
He noted that it is possible that more variants could arise, as the virus is constantly mutating. He hopes however, that Omicron would be the last ‘variant of concern’.
“Hopefully they would not be at the level of a variant of concern, but maybe variants under investigation, which means that we’ll observe them, see what’s happening and be able to find treatment for them, but they would not become so disruptive.”
Meanwhile, some 433, 155 or 84.4 percent of the adult population took the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 329, 487 or 64.2 percent are fully vaccinated.
In terms of the 12 to 17 age group, 33, 629 or 46.1 percent took the first dose of the US-made Pfizer vaccine with 24, 325 0r 33.4 percent receiving both doses.
Dr. Anthony is again urging persons to get vaccinated as there continues to be a low vaccination rate, especially in adolescents and for booster shots for adults.