Cape Town – A total of 1 086 new Covid-19 cases have been identified in South Africa, with the cumulative number increasing to 1 579 536.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Thursday night 46 Covid-19-related deaths have been reported: Gauteng 14, Eastern Cape 13, Free State 11, Northern Cape 3, Western Cape 3 and KwaZulu-Natal 2. Limpopo, North West and Mpumalanga recorded no fatalities.
The death toll rose to 54 331, with the cumulative recoveries now standing at 1 504 426, representing a recovery rate of 95%.
The number of tests conducted to date is 10 625 030. Of these, 23 137 tests were conducted since the last report.
The number of healthcare workers vaccinated under the Sisonke Protocol to date is 307 591.
Total global spending on Covid-19 vaccines is projected to reach $157bn (R2.2 trillion) by 2025, driven by mass vaccination programmes under way and "booster shots" expected every two years, according to a report by US health data company IQVIA Holdings Inc released on Thursday.
IQVIA said it expects the first wave of Covid-19 vaccinations to reach about 70% of the world's population by the end of 2022. Booster shots are likely to follow initial vaccinations every two years, the report said, based on current data on the duration of effect of the vaccines.
The US is preparing for the possibility that a booster shot will be needed between nine to 12 months after people receive their first full inoculations against Covid-19, a White House official said earlier this month. Pfizer Inc has also said boosters may be needed within 12 months.
Germany has managed to break the rapid rise in new coronavirus infections, but it is still too early to sound the all-clear, the head of the Robert Koch Institute for infectious disease said on Thursday.
"Unfortunately, the pandemic is not over yet," Lothar Wieler told a weekly news conference, adding Covid-19 cases remain too high and are rising among those aged under 60.
IOL