COVID hospitalisations under control

Despite an increasing number of COVID-19 cases recorded in Hà Nội in recent days, the number of hospitalised patients has not increased considerably, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH).

Among nearly 5,900 COVID-19 patients being treated at hospitals in Hà Nội, there are 958 mild or asymptomatic cases, more than 3,800 moderate cases (down 2.6 per cent compared to the average seven days ago), with 91 patients in serious or critical condition (down nearly 3 per cent).

The number of cases that require High Flow Nasal Cannula and non-invasive respiratory assistance sharply decreased by 26 per cent.

According to the MoH, Việt Nam recorded 147,358 COVID-19 infections on March 7, bringing the national tally since the start of the pandemic to 4,582,058.

Hà Nội continued to top the daily numbers with a record of 32,317 transmissions and 15 deaths. It was followed by central Nghệ An (10,153), northern Bắc Ninh Province (7,873) and northern Phú Thọ Province (4,326).

As many as 36,993 COVID patients made a full recovery on March 7, lifting the total number of recovered patients in the country to 2,718,440.

More than 4,100 COVID patients are in serious or critical condition, with the majority requiring oxygen masks.

An additional 78 COVID-related deaths were confirmed in the day, raising the nation's death toll to 40,891.

At a meeting on COVID-19 prevention and control and economic recovery in HCM City on Monday, Head of the Office of the HCM City Department of Health Nguyễn Thị Huỳnh Mai said people should not hoard the antiviral drug molnupiravir as its shelf life was shorter than other drugs.

The MoH had licensed three pharmaceutical companies to produce antiviral drugs with a monthly capacity of about 2 million pills, so there would be no shortage of drugs, she said.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) still considers the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic and predicts unforeseen variations. In many countries, the pandemic is still complicated, requiring the maintenance of high-level pandemic response activities.

The rate of severe cases and deaths in the country has decreased strongly, though the daily number of deaths is still around 100.

The MoH said that Việt Nam should not yet consider the COVID-19 pandemic as an "endemic disease."