HPA urges caution against rise in Covid-19 cases

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has urged caution from the public, against a recent rise in Covid-19 cases.

In a press release issued on Tuesday, the public health authority revealed that after a significant drop in infections reported across the country for a few months, the positivity rate has once again begun increasing .

As such, HPA revealed that 142 Covid-19 cases were confirmed over the past week, which is an increase of 69 percent compared to recent months.

Further, the healthcare authority has also identified an increase in the number of hospital admissions in recent days.

The authority revealed that a total of 15 persons were hospitalized for treatment throughout May. However, 11 people were hospitalized by the 12th day of June.

With this being said, HPA has urged the public to be more vigilant in observing safety precautions, isolate themselves and undergo Covid-19 testing if they exhibit symptoms.

The public has also been urged to use face masks if they are symptomatic or at high risk of complications from Covid-19.

Should anyone contract the virus, HPA has urged them to isolate themselves as soon as they get their positive test results and provide information regarding contact tracing, to the authorities.

Those who have not completed their vaccine shots have also been urged to do so.

Although the weekly sample positivity rate was at six percent between April 24 – 30, it dropped as low as three percent between May 8 – 14. In the past week, this number rose to eight percent, which means that Covid-19 cases are increasing once more.

Authorities have not yet revealed any plans to implement stricter measures against the rise in Covid-19 cases.

The state of public health emergency declared nationwide on 12 March 2020, was dissolved starting 13 March 2022.

HPA announced a number of measures to tighten health and safety restrictions in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19 across the island nation earlier in March.

As such, the face mask mandate that came into effect across the Maldives in February 2021, was dissolved. The move coincided with the start of the fasting month of Ramadan.

Some of the key points taken into consideration when revoking the state of public health emergency, exactly after two years since it was imposed, include the fact that the Covid-19 situation in most islands and regions is improving as well as the success in maintaining low hospitalization and death rates.

It was also revealed that Covid-19 response will continue according to the ‘Covid-19 Strategy’, and measures will be taken according to the prevailing Covid-19 situation, even though the public health emergency has been revoked.