Country registers two COVID deaths for first time in weeks
Two people died of COVID-19 early Thursday, the first deaths since one person died on June 23. The last time two people succumbed to the coronavirus within 24 hours was May 27.
A 48-year-old man with no significant preexisting condition who was not vaccinated died during the night, Wolfson Medical Center in Holon reported. An 86-year-old man who was fully vaccinated died, Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa reported.
During the current outbreak, more than 40% of the cases have been schoolchildren, and about half have been people who were fully vaccinated. That might help explain why the increase in morbidity has remained limited, being that both groups are not expected to develop serious symptoms.
On Wednesday, 518 new virus carriers were identified, and about 0.7% of the 74,000 tests processed returned a positive result, the Health Ministry reported. Currently, there are about 3,600 active cases, compared with fewer than 200 in mid-June.
At last count, there were 46 patients in serious condition. Twenty-one people were in serious condition on June 20. In April, with a similar number of cases, there were 140. At the peak of the pandemic, 1,200 people were in serious condition, and there were 85,000 active cases.
The vaccine has been less effective in preventing infection from the contagious Delta variant, but it still protects against serious symptoms, hospitalization and death, according to the Health Ministry.
Slightly more than 40% of the patients in serious conditions were fully vaccinated, it said.
The vast majority of patients in serious condition belong to at-risk groups, such as elderly people or individuals with serious preexisting conditions, coronavirus commissioner Nachman Ash said Wednesday during a press briefing.
During the coronavirus cabinet meeting on Wednesday, the ministers decided that serious morbidity would be the most important parameter they will consider in formulating a strategy to counter the outbreak.
Inbound travelers will be required to isolate until they receive the results of the PCR test they take upon arrival, and rapid coronavirus tests, also known as antigen tests, will be performed at summer camps, programs for children and at the entrance of nursing homes, the health authorities decided.
No date for when the measures will come into effect has been announced, but Ash said it would take about a week.
Saturday is expected to be the last day when people under the age of 18 can receive their first shot of the coronavirus vaccine. The supply of Pfizer vaccines is due to expire on July 31, and a new shipment is not expected before the fall, although the Israeli authorities are trying to move it up.
Israel has about 200,000 doses of Moderna, which it is planning to use, but the vaccine is only authorized for people over the age of 18.
As of Thursday morning, some 155,000 children ages 12-15, the latest cohort to become eligible for the jab, had been vaccinated, out of a population of about 570,000. Another 55,000 of them have recovered from COVID-19.