Vietnam and the virus coexist epidemic classification is no longer determined by the number of confirmed cases

Vietnam Epidemic Prevention The thinking has changed from the previous “clearing” to “coexisting with the virus”. Vietnam’s Ministry of Health recently stated that it will stop evaluating the COVID-19 epidemic based on the number of new confirmed cases in a single day, and will instead refer to the number of hospitalizations and deaths.

Nguyen Truong Son, Deputy Minister of Health of Vietnam, said in a recent interview with Vietnam Express (VnExpress) that due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) epidemic Changes, Vietnam’s Ministry of Health is drafting a new set of criteria to distinguish epidemic levels.

He said: “The new standard will not rely too much on the community infection rate, because mild and asymptomatic patients in many provinces and cities are treated at home.”

Nguyen Viet Hung, vice-chairman of the Hanoi Infection Control Association, also endorsed the change in standards. With high vaccine coverage, counting new cases in a single day is no longer significant, he said, and will affect efforts to recover the economy.

Taking Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, as an example, he said that the number of community cases in Hanoi has been growing recently, and many areas have had to suspend non-essential services or not allow people to use it inside. However, the number of severe cases and deaths in Hanoi is lower than the national average.

The report pointed out that between January 1 and January 9, Hanoi had the highest number of confirmed cases in the country, but the death rate of infection was 0.4%, a low 1.3% of the country.

Tran Si Tuan, a medical expert, said that it is difficult for Vietnam to avoid letting the COVID-19 variant virus Omicron enter the community. Omicron spreads faster than the Delta variant virus. Many provinces and cities will be identified as “very high risk” or “high risk” based on the number of new confirmed cases in a single day, which will seriously affect production and business activities.

The total population of Vietnam is about 98 million, and the total number of confirmed cases has crossed the 2 million mark on the 15th. In the past 7 days, nearly 16,000 people have been infected every day on average.

Up to now, more than 90% of Vietnamese people over the age of 18 have received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, of which more than 10% have received booster shots; The previous average of 7,500 per day has fallen to the current 6,150.

Vietnam’s anti-epidemic thinking has changed from the previous “zero” to “coexisting with the virus”. Vietnam’s Ministry of Health recently stated that it will stop evaluating the COVID-19 epidemic based on the number of new confirmed cases in a single day, and will instead refer to the number of hospitalizations and deaths.