HO CHI MINH CITY, July 4 (Vietnam News / ANN): Prime Minister Pham Minh ChÃnh held a virtual meeting on the prevention and control of Covid-19 on Sunday with eight localities in the south experiencing a worrying increase in the latter cases days.
Prime Minister ChÃnh said that while the situation remains largely under control, despite several instructions and measures from the government and the National Steering Committee for the Prevention and Control of Covid-19, the recent trend has shown no positive signs but seems have “more complicated developments,” urging localities to discuss frankly and responsibly what more could be done to end the current epidemics.
The head of government said he did not want the epidemics to continue, in the interests of the safety and health of people and the socio-economic development of the country.
At the meeting, leaders of southern cities and provinces – HCM City, Bình Duong, Dong Nai, Long An, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Tien Giang – appreciated the leadership of the government, especially regarding the initiative to allow workers in industrial areas to live and work inside their companies, thereby reducing the risk of the virus spreading in the community while preventing disruption of business and production activities.
Some have admitted to having stumbled in the management of rapidly evolving epidemics, especially in terms of limited testing capacity, sometimes inadequate coordination between anti-pandemic units, as well as lack of public compliance with prevention and control measures. .
Localities in the south ask the government to provide more diagnostic machines and rapid tests to hard-hit localities, to simplify the procedures for purchasing medical supplies in the service of the fight against Covid-19, to allocate additional vaccines to epidemic areas and to better coordinate movement and flow of goods between the localities affected by the epidemic.
Prime Minister ChÃnh praised the efforts made so far, but warned that “without increased measures and efforts” the situation would easily get out of hand, especially in the city of HCM and the surrounding communities.
He pointed out that with Hanoi, HCM City is the economic center of the country and the southern region, and that the response to Covid-19 is much more demanding.
HCM City officially overtook the former Bac Giang hotspot in the northern region on Sunday to become the worst-affected locality in the country, with nearly 6,000 cases recorded since late May and a triple-digit daily increase last week.
The government and ministries have beefed up frontline units in the city of HCM and in southern localities, asking health, military and public safety units in Covid-free cities and provinces to send aid to others when needed.
Prime Minister ChÃnh said that depending on the situation, local governments can apply localized closures and social distancing orders, make full use of grassroots political units in the fight against epidemics, implement the government’s resolution on supporting workers and employers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, and working with the Department of Health to implement the vaccination strategy in a timely and safe manner.
The pilot home quarantine program and letting suspected cases and their contacts self-test must be done in an efficient and safe manner.
The public is encouraged to continue to closely observe the 5K + vaccine message – (khẩu trang) face mask, (khá» khuẩn) disinfection, (khoảng cách) distance, (không tụ táºp) no large gathering, and (khai báo y tế) health declaration.
He ordered HCM City and neighboring communities to work together to ensure an uninterrupted flow of goods but in a way that prevents the spread of the virus, – Vietnam News / ANN
