SA in pandemic stalemate with curve plateauing
SOUTH Africa has entered into a stalemate with Covid-19.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla said there had been a less resilient decline in infections over the past two weeks. “Instead of the curve flattening, this time the curve’s been on a plateau. There has been no rise or decline,” he said.
However, there had been an increase in confirmed cases among the younger generations, especially following the return to school.
Phaahla said infections of those under the age of 20 had increased. “We’ve actually witnessed more infections among the school-going age. Some colleagues, who are general practitioners, also reported similar observations of seeing more children of school-going age testing positive in bigger numbers,” Phaahla said.
However, while more youth were being infected, the country was close to hitting its herd immunity target of about 40 million vaccinated citizens.
According to data from the National Health Department (NDOH) and the National Institute For Communicable Diseases, over 30 million jabs have been administered.
The national vaccination rollout has continued to forge ahead with the NDOH spokesperson, Foster Mohale, saying that vaccinations remained a priority and the most powerful weapon in the anti-covid-19 arsenal.
Vaccinology professor Shabir Madhi from Wits University has continued to emphasise the importance of vaccinations, particularly in high-risk patients such as those with co-morbidities, compromised immune systems due to disorders or chemotherapy, and the elderly.
Madhi called for the State of Disaster to end.
He said an advisory body should be formed to scrutinise the country throughout the pandemic, detailing successes and failures.
“The country’s increased levels of the Covid-19 death rate and infection rates told a story that the lockdown and its restrictions didn’t stop the spread of the virus.”
Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma gazetted amendments to the State of Disaster following previous alterations, such as scrapping the curfew, as well as social distancing at schools.
Dlamini Zuma extended the National State of Disaster to February 15.
The recent change was that asymptomatic Covid-19 positive citizens were not required to self-isolate or go into quarantine, although those who exhibited symptoms would have to continue with the tried and tested rules of isolation.