New Covid cases drop below 600

The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) reported yesterday 593 new confirmed cases of coronavirus (Covid-19) – 389 of these were from community cases and 204 from travellers returning from abroad.

The MoPH recorded 1,321 recoveries from the virus during the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases recovered in Qatar to 198,277. The ministry announced four new deaths aged 49, 63, 68 and 73, three of which had a history of chronic disease. All were receiving the necessary medical care.

Vaccination data

1,732,471 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered since the start of the programme.

30,557 vaccine doses have been administered in the past 24 hours.

47.7% of the eligible population has now received at least one dose of the vaccine.

87% of over 60s (the most vulnerable population group) have been vaccinated with at least one dose, while 78.4% have received both doses.

Every day, hundreds of people are becoming sick due to the Covid-19 with many requiring admission to hospital to manage their symptoms. Since February 1, the number of people with Covid-19 admitted to hospital has doubled. Qatar’s strict quarantine policy for returning travellers enabled us to delay the introduction of new variants into this country for several months but we are now seeing positive Covid-19 cases in the region and in Qatar with the new variants from the United Kingdom.

This new variant is much more contagious and spread more easily between people than the existing strain and may be associated with increased severity of disease. The good news is that the Pfizer/ BioNTech and Moderna vaccines being used in our vaccination programme are effective against the new variants.

The pace of the vaccination programme means that there is finally hope of a gradual return to normal for us here in Qatar and people around the world. But this will not happen in the next few weeks or months.

Covid-19 will continue to be a threat to our health for the majority of 2021 and until all eligible members of our population have been vaccinated, we must continue to follow the preventive measures. With the recent increase in the number of Covid-19 cases in Qatar, it is important for everyone to play their role in controlling the virus by following precautionary measures.