In response to persistent coronavirus risks, HCMC will prolong its social isolation status for another month, until the 15th of September.
The decision to prolong the campaign of social separation was decided Sunday when the metropolis of ten million population completed thirty days of the smart lockdown under Directive 16 and registered 149,286 Covid instances. It had previously conducted a 40-day social distancing campaign in accordance with Directive 15.
Directive 16 mandates individuals to remain at home and go out only for essentials such as purchasing food or medications or to work in factories or enterprises that are permitted to function. Directive 15 mandates the suspension of social activities and prohibits meetings of 20 or more individuals in one location, as well as gatherings of 10 or more persons outside of businesses, schools, and hospitals.
The epidemic continues to rage in HCMC, with the number of daily new cases increasing on Saturday and Sunday after a brief decline. The city’s mortality rate remains high, with 241 fatalities per day on average.
The city continues to prohibit residents from leaving their homes between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. of the next day, save for vaccination, emergency, pandemic prevention forces, those permitted by local authorities, and workers of supermarkets and convenience shops. Shops and commercial enterprises are required to stay closed.
Except for health forces and military, who must guarantee 100 percent capacity in executing their pandemic management responsibilities, state agencies and political organizations shall operate with no more than one-fourth of their personnel on-site.
Nguyen Thanh Phong, Municipal Chairman, said on Sunday that the city intends to control the epidemic in two stages by September 15.
From August 15 to August 31, the city will work to decrease Covid-19 deaths, extend infection-free regions, and bring the epidemic under control in Phu Nhuan, Cu Chi, Nha Be, Can Gio, and districts 5, 7, and 11.
The city’s second phase, from September 1 to September 15, will focus on lowering the mortality rate among severely ill patients by 20 percent and ensuring that daily new admissions must not exceed the number of those released.
