Photo: Zing

Daily Covid-19 tally drops to the lowest level in more than two months

Vietnam documented a further 14,660 new coronavirus infections across 60 localities nationwide, the lowest level recorded over more than two months, the Health Ministry said in its April 17 update. All the fresh infections were detected locally, a fall of 3,814 cases from one day earlier.

The three localities with the highest number of new cases were Hanoi with 1,253 cases, northern Yen Bai province with 801 cases, and northern Quang Ninh province with 778 cases. The average Covid-19 fatalities over the past week were 19 a day, down around 39% from the previous week.

The Covid-19 death toll in the country is now 42,944 following the confirmation of an additional 10 fatalities over the past 24 hours. The same day, a further 5,472 Covid-19 patients were declared free from the virus, bringing the total number of recovered cases up to more than 8.9 million.

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Nearly 1,000 Hanoi sixth-graders vaccinated against Covid-19

Nearly 1,000 sixth grade students aged 11 years old to 11 years and 10 months old in Hanoi’s districts of Ha Dong, Phu Xuyen, and Soc Son were vaccinated against the Covid-19 on April 16. They were the first in the capital to receive the inoculation as the city has kicked off the vaccine rollout for children aged 5 to under 12. The campaign began in other districts the following day.

The second dose will be provided 28 days after the first dose. Priority is being given to those with congenital and underlying diseases, malnutrition, obesity, and others, according to the Director of the municipal Department of Health Tran Thi Nhi Ha. It is estimated that Hanoi has more than 1 million children in the targeted age group.

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Herd immunity yet to be achieved despite wide Covid-19 vaccine coverage

Due to the current developments relating to the Covid-19 pandemic, it remains difficult to confirm whether or not the country has achieved herd immunity amid the possible appearance of fresh variants that can render vaccines ineffective. This assessment was made by Associate Professor Dr Tran Dac Phu, senior advisor at the Public Health Emergency Operations Center under the Health Ministry, during his recent talks with a VOV reporter.

A very high vaccination rate does not mean that herd immunity has been achieved, whilst not being vaccinated does not necessarily mean someone is infectious, according to him. For vaccinated people, their immunity is reduced over time and they can still contract the disease, becoming a source of infection for others. This is different from other vaccines such as the measles vaccine or Japanese encephalitis vaccine as once vaccinated there will be complete immunity.

The nation’s current effective control of the Covid-19 pandemic has so far proved the health capacity and anti-pandemic capacity of administrations at all levels, with both ministries and people seeing further improvements. With its strategy on "living safely with the pandemic", the country has adapted to flexible Covid-19 prevention and control measures in a bid to ensure economic activities and social security go smoothly.

Vietnam Covid-19 Updates (April 17): Daily Infections Continue to Plunge As of April 15, the country had injected more than 209.3 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines.

Vietnam Covid-19 Updates (April 16): More Than 20,000 New Cases As of April 14, the country had injected more than 209 million Covid-19 vaccine doses.

Vietnam Covid-19 Updates (April 14): 24,623 New Covid-19 Cases, Nearly 14,000 Recoveries By April 12, the country had injected 208,810,706 doses of Covid-19 vaccines.