More drastic measures urged to secure and expand safe zones against COVID-19

Ho Chi Minh City should take stronger and more drastic measures to secure and expand the already safe zones against COVID-19, experts have suggested.

During a teleconference between the Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control and leaders of Ho Chi Minh City and the Government's Special Working Group in the southern hub on August 2, the Steering Committee requested the city to devise a specific plan for deploying a daily vaccination campaign after requesting the Ministry of Health to provide more vaccines.

The city should continue to strengthen the community-based health monitoring system and coordinate smoothly with concerned units in quickly and timely transfer COVID-19 patients to proper medical facilities that match their severity levels.

With the results achieved in turning the danger zones (yellow zone) to safe zones (green zone), as well as maintaining the safe zones, it is important to take stronger and more drastic measures to secure and expand the already safe areas, the Steering Committee proposed the city.

From the experience of Ho Chi Minh City and some other localities, the Steering Committee assigned the Ministry of Health to guide provinces and cities with few COVID-19 cases to continue consolidating their prevention measures, speeding up self-sample collecting for COVID-19 testing, and preparing all necessary conditions in case of the epidemic to spread more widely.

The Steering Committee noted that localities need to set up a hotline system capable of receiving and fully processing information about people's health support, not only related to the COVID-19 epidemic.

In Hanoi, as the current outbreaks in recent days tend to be complicated with new cases have been found in commodity supply chains, the local authorities have asked for special attention to be paid to the adjustment of the supply chain to ensure supply and safety against the epidemic.

At an online briefing on August 2, Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Chu Ngoc Anh asked the Department of Industry and Trade and local authorities to immediately prepare a plan to ensure the supply of goods and circulation of essentials for each locality in the capital city, while ensuring safety for the local system of markets and supermarkets, as well as speeding up the review of support for the weak and disadvantaged due to the impact of COVID-19.

Localities need to strictly implement social distancing measures to help "separate" all infections in the community, while continuously re-evaluating high-risk areas, especially densely populated areas, along with groups of service workers and those joining supply chains.

The Hanoi leader also pledge to speed up vaccination in the most "fastest" efforts to quickly cover the immunity in the community.

The Hanoi Centre for Disease Control has asked all local residents to immediately contact local medical authorities to receive guidelines and get free COVID-19 testing when showing one or more symptoms of coughing, high temperature, sore throat, breathing trouble, tiredness, and reduction or lack of taste or smell. They can also call hotlines 0969 082 115, or 0949 396 115 for advice and support.