(Trinidad Express) Trinidad and Tobago recorded six Covid-19 deaths in August and zero in July, according to the Health Ministry.
The Express submitted questions to the Ministry on Monday, asking Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Roshan Parasram for an update on the Covid-19 numbers in this country.
The ministry responded yesterday, saying there has been a decrease in the Covid-19 infection rate, with a small spike during July/August because of a new variant.
It said via e-mail that between the period March 12, 2020, and August 31, 2023, the ministry recorded a total of 192,079 Covid-19 positives, with 4,402 deaths.
The ministry said that epidemiology weeks 34 and 35 have shown consecutive decreases in the total number of recorded positive cases.
“Coupled with this epidemiological data, hospitalisations for this period have also remained at a very low level, with a total of 23 patients in hospitals across the parallel and hybrid healthcare systems, which includes the Couva Hospital,” said the ministry.
“As it relates to new variants, the VOI EG5.1.1 was first detected at the end of June 2023, and may have contributed to the minimal increases noted from July into August. While there were no deaths recorded for July, six deaths were recorded for August 2023,” it added.
According to a CBS News report, this variant is estimated to be the “dominant” strain in the United States because it makes up the largest share of new cases of Covid-19 compared to other variants.
On August 18, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated EG.5 made up 20.6 per cent of new infections. On September 1, estimates increased to 21.5 per cent of new cases.
Vaccines available
The Health Ministry also reminded that the public (ages 12 and over) has access to Covid-19 vaccines—some of which expire this month.
The Pfizer vaccine will only be administered as a booster dose (for children over 12 and adults) while the Sinopharm vaccine is available as both a primary and booster dose for adults only.
Vaccines for influenza will be made available during the period October 2023 to May 2024.
The ministry further reminded the public, particularly the vulnerable (those with chronic diseases, the elderly, pregnant patients and the unvaccinated), that they should continue to maintain the principles and practice of good hygiene as these measures will assist in the maintenance of low levels of transmission of Covid-19 and other infectious diseases.
On May 5, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that Covid-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency, marking a symbolic end to the devastating coronavirus pandemic that triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions of people worldwide.
However, UN health agency’s officials said even though the emergency phase was over, the pandemic hasn’t finished as it had noted spikes in cases in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.
WHO director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in declaring the pandemic over, said this does not mean Covid-19 is over as a global health threat.
