Number of cases in Nepal increases, Israel issues RATs | Canberra Times
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Nepal has registered a record number of new daily coronavirus infections while Israel begins to distribute millions of free rapid antigen tests and Swedish authorities dropped the requirement for people entering the country to take a test. Nepal registered 10,258 new infections on Tuesday, government data showed, the highest number reported in a single day when the government estimated that the number could double by the end of the month. The total number of infections since the beginning of the pandemic peaked at 972,198 and coronavirus-related deaths amounted to 11,624. The previous daily record was 9,483 cases in May last year. Authorities extended an earlier ban on large public gatherings in the hilly Kathmandu valley, where more than four million people live, until February 12 from January 29 to try to control the spread of the virus. Nepal’s daily number of infections is likely to double by the end of January and cases of hospital stays could increase sharply to further strain the country’s poor health infrastructure, officials said. “This is just a projection for us to prepare,” Krishna Prasad Poudel, head of the epidemiology and disease control department, told Reuters. “Actual figures may be higher or lower than the probable 20,000 daily falls before they begin to fall.” Hospitals were short of beds and many patients died due to lack of oxygen when the outbreak of the Delta variant peaked in May last year. “The government has taken appropriate measures to ensure that there is no shortage of oxygen this time,” Poudel said. Nepal, which has double-vaccinated 40.6 percent of its 30 million people since last year, began providing covid-19 vaccine boosters to front-line workers on Monday. Neighboring Bhutan reported a daily figure of 141 cases on Monday, also the highest number since the pandemic began. Meanwhile, the Israeli government said on Tuesday that it will begin distributing up to 30 million free rapid antigen tests next week focusing on school children, lower-income families and the elderly. “The government is looking for all possible ways to help the people of Israel get through the Omicron wave. We have decided to provide free tests to the citizens of Israel, students and the entire population,” said Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in a statement. Israel recently eased the stringent rules requiring PCR testing due to test site overcrowding and laboratory stress. The government is now allowing more people to take a quick test on their own at home – for example, if they came in contact with an infected person – rather than forcing them to take PCR tests. An antigen test kit can cost about $ 7 ($ 9.70) in Israel, an amount that the government is reportedly working to reduce. Recently, almost 50,000 new cases of coronavirus have been reported daily. The Ministry of Health has not published any new figures since Sunday evening – a delay due to the reporting system being overwhelmed, according to Israeli media. Only about 62 percent of the population is considered fully vaccinated – which Israel defines as that they are double-stitched and received the last sting less than six months ago or that they received a booster. Officials in Stockholm said on Tuesday that travelers to Sweden will no longer have to show a negative covid-19 test before entering the country. Sweden introduced rules for a recently conducted negative covid-19 test on December 28 last year in an attempt to slow down the spread of the more contagious Omicron variant. Since then, Sweden has repeatedly set new daily fall records with Omicron, which is now the totally dominant variant. “Travelers are no longer considered to pose a particular risk of affecting the spread of Omicron in Sweden,” the government said in a statement. with reporting from Reuters Australian Associated Press
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Nepal has registered a record number of new daily coronavirus infections while Israel begins to distribute millions of free rapid antigen tests and Swedish authorities dropped the requirement for people entering the country to take a test.
Nepal registered 10,258 new infections on Tuesday, government data showed, the highest number reported in a single day when the government estimated that the number could double by the end of the month.
The total number of infections since the beginning of the pandemic peaked at 972,198 and coronavirus-related deaths amounted to 11,624.
The previous daily record was 9483 cases in May last year.
Authorities extended an earlier ban on large public gatherings in the hilly Kathmandu valley, where more than four million people live, until February 12 from January 29 to try to control the spread of the virus.
Nepal’s daily number of infections is likely to double by the end of January and cases of hospital stays could increase sharply to further strain the country’s poor health infrastructure, officials said.
“This is just a projection for us to prepare,” Krishna Prasad Poudel, head of the epidemiology and disease control department, told Reuters.
“Actual figures may be higher or lower than the probable 20,000 daily falls before they begin to fall.”
Hospitals were short of beds and many patients died due to lack of oxygen when the outbreak of the Delta variant peaked in May last year.
“The government has taken appropriate measures to ensure that there is no shortage of oxygen this time,” Poudel said.
Nepal, which has double-vaccinated 40.6 percent of its 30 million people since last year, began providing covid-19 vaccine boosters to front-line workers on Monday.
Neighboring Bhutan reported a daily figure of 141 cases on Monday, also the highest number since the pandemic began.
Meanwhile, the Israeli government said on Tuesday that it will begin distributing up to 30 million free rapid antigen tests next week focusing on school children, lower-income families and the elderly.
“The government is looking for all possible ways to help the people of Israel get through the Omicron wave. We have decided to provide free tests to the citizens of Israel, students and the entire population,” said Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in a statement.
Israel recently eased the stringent rules requiring PCR testing due to test site overcrowding and laboratory stress.
The government is now allowing more people to take a quick test on their own at home – for example, if they came in contact with an infected person – rather than forcing them to take PCR tests.
An antigen test kit can cost about $ 7 ($ 9.70) in Israel, an amount that the government is reportedly working to reduce.
Recently, almost 50,000 new cases of coronavirus have been reported daily.
The Ministry of Health has not published any new figures since Sunday evening – a delay due to the reporting system being overwhelmed, according to Israeli media.
Only about 62 percent of the population is considered fully vaccinated – which Israel defines as that they are double-stitched and received the last sting less than six months ago or that they received a booster.
Officials in Stockholm said on Tuesday that travelers to Sweden will no longer have to show a negative covid-19 test before entering the country.
Sweden introduced rules for a recently conducted negative covid-19 test on December 28 last year in an attempt to slow down the spread of the more contagious Omicron variant.
Since then, Sweden has repeatedly set new daily fall records with Omicron, which is now the totally dominant variant.
“Travelers are no longer considered to pose a particular risk of affecting the spread of Omicron in Sweden,” the government said in a statement.
with reporting from Reuters
Australian Associated Press