GARDEN ROUTE NEWS - George Hospital will cease to be a Covid-19 vaccination site at the end of the Sisonke trial, during which health care workers received Covid-19 vaccinations.
Phase 2 vaccinations are to start on Monday 17 May with persons over 60 years of age. To date, 23 613 people have registered in the district, according to Western Cape health department spokesperson Nadia Ferreira.
A vaccination site opened at Harry Comay Hospital last week and the other sites in George are Thembalethu CDC (Ngakani Street), George Central Clinic (Progress Street) and Uniondale Hospital. A mobile vaccination unit will also be available.
Active cases
According to provincial statistics, the Garden Route as at Tuesday 11 May has recorded 294 active cases (including reinfections), compared with 218 cases a week ago.
The active case numbers for the sub-districts are George 89, Mossel Bay 84, Oudtshoorn 64, Knysna 24, Bitou 19, Hessequa 5 and Kannaland 9.
Overseas variants imported
The Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) reported that 11 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant (currently dominant in Europe and North America) have been detected in SA. Eight of these cases are in the Western Cape.
Four cases of the B.1.617 variant circulating in India have also been detected (two in Gauteng and two in KwaZulu-Natal).
The specimens were from travellers from India.
All these cases have been isolated.
National Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said there is no need to panic about the B.1.617 from India because, as with any variant of the coronavirus, the treatment and the way its spread is prevented are the same - adhering to Covid-19 hygiene protocols.
"Even though the B.1.351 (prevalent in South Africa) has more mutations than the B.1.617 (prevalent in India), we were still able to control the spread of B.1.351 in South Africa and bring the wave down to a plateau."
He said the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) is deliberating on the issue of border control as there is concern that an imported variant could drive another wave.
Mkhize expressed concern over the increase in cases in certain districts in the Free State, Gauteng, Northern Cape and North West in the past two weeks.
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