2
www.thevillagenews.co.za
6 January 2021
Covid numbers continue to rise Writer De Waal Steyn
W
hile summer is in full swing and Overstranders are missing the beach and our region’s delicious wines and beers, the number of active Covid-19 infections is still higher than what it was during the first wave. On Monday, the number of active cases in the Overberg stood at 1 978, of which 733 were in the Overstrand. Since the start of the outbreak, 270 people in the Overberg have lost their lives due to the Coronavirus. Masizole Mnqasela, speaker of the Western Cape Government and Member of the Provincial Parliament for the Overberg said in a statement last week that deaths in the province in the two weeks preceding New Year’s Day rose to an average of 100 per day or 1 death every 10 minutes. “Our positivity rate has gone up by 50% and the Department of Health will not be able to manage this alone. Our healthcare workers are only human; they too are tired now. We have lost 20 healthcare workers in the past 20 days. Let us all play our part and minimise our contact with people we don’t stay with,” Mnqasela said. According to him, what is of significant concern at this stage is that children are infected with the virus and infecting adults and other children too. “Children also get as critically ill from Covid-19. The Department of Health has already established where the
areas of highest infection per district are. This data will be used to proactively plan for the safe return to school as the 2021 official opening nears.” He said that additional beds were received from the Western Cape Government for the Overstrand Municipal area to augment the current capacity at the Hermanus Provincial Hospital. While the number of infected people nationally is still climbing at an alarming rate, the state hopes to conclude negotiations with Coronavirus vaccine suppliers and begin vaccinating frontline healthcare workers in February, according to a rollout strategy announced by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize on Sunday evening. South Africa is expected to start receiving vaccine supplies to cover 10% of the population through the Covax initiative by the beginning of the second quarter of 2021, but Mkhize said government departments were working urgently to secure vaccines through bilateral deals with manufacturers. “In fact, we are targeting February. Although all of that is going to depend very much on the success of the current bilateral negotiations that we’re having with various companies,” said the minister in a virtual press briefing. He said the target date was “really more our wish” and no deals had been reached to deliver vaccines by February, but the government was “fighting” to secure supplies before the second quarter of the year.
Under the strategy, a vaccine will be administered in three phases, starting with the country’s estimated 1.25 million frontline healthcare workers. An estimated 16 million people will be vaccinated in the second phase, including people working in essential services and congregate settings, the elderly, and people with comorbidities. Phase three will target another 22 million people to bring the total number of persons vaccinated to 40.3 million, or 67% of the country’s population, the level at which it’s believed herd immunity can be achieved. “We have always said that the second wave is going to come and that the only way we will be protected is by developing herd immunity through vaccination. Because of that we have been working very hard by following all the research and development that has taken place globally. At this point we do believe that the issue of rolling out
vaccines must be handled with urgency and that is what has driven us to expedite the availability of vaccines,” Mkhize said.
This will very much depend on the success of current bilateral negotiations we are in the midst of with various companies.
He added that he believes vaccines must be made available to all South Africans. “At this stage we have secured the doses that will be acquired through Covax which will ensure that we immunize 10% of the population through this mechanism and, in line with the President's statement, we expect the processes to deliver the vaccine by beginning of the second quarter. The funds to pay the outstanding amount after the deposit that has been made by the Solidarity Fund, around R1,8 billion, have been allocated.
“Additionally, we have embarked on Public Private Partnerships with very good outcomes and we have approached medical aids to be part of the co-financing. The process is now at a stage where the Council for Medical Schemes has engaged various medical schemes and I have signed amendments of regulations to allow for vaccines and other therapeutics to be part of the prescribed minimum benefits,” the minister said.
“Having secured for 10% of the population, we have embarked on other efforts to target the rest of the 57% of the population by the end 2021 but, more importantly, we are making efforts to obtain vaccines much earlier, hopefully as early as February 2021.
Mkhize concluded by saying that these efforts have involved a lot of work and that the department would be doing more to communicate information to the public to dispel misconceptions and to ensure preparation for this massive campaign, particularly because some of the vaccines would require two doses.
Our brand new
Sutherland Table is the ultimate celebration of nature
087 1533 625 helene@incanda.co.za 15 Village Lane, Hemel & Aarde Village, Hermanus
www.incanda.co.za
