MOH spokesman, Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdulaali, has declared that fluctuations are still observed in the COVID-19 infection curve in the Kingdom. He underscored the importance of adhering to the preventive measures, and called on those who have been in contact with a confirmed positive case to self-isolate themselves, even if their test results are negative, for at least 10 days. According to Al-Abdulaali, 1,514,501 individuals have received the coronavirus vaccine so far.
He highlighted that there are contraindications of the vaccine. Even those with severe allergy, and breastfeeding mothers should still receive the vaccine, he stressed. Similarly, he added, patients with cancer or immunodeficiency, and persons with transplanted organs, should receive the vaccine, and ask the doctor when to do so.
As for children and pregnant women, he said, they are not entirely excluded from vaccination, but it would be better to wait for the results of the current studies to come up. Based on the findings of such studies, new guidelines may be issued in due time, and new recommendations may be put forth by the competent authorities.
Al-Abdulaali revealed that 390 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the Kingdom, bringing the total cases to 380,572. These include 2,695 active cases, still receiving medical care. Their health status is mostly stable, with the exception of 515 critical cases.
The MOH spokesman made this statement in the COVID-19 briefing held on Tuesday, which also hosted the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) spokesman, Mr. Abdul-Rahman Al-Hussein. Dr. Al-Abdulaali mentioned that 306 COVID-19 recoveries were reported, bringing the total number of recoveries to 371,338 to date. Four new deaths were also reported, bringing the total COVID-19 deaths in the Kingdom to 6,539.
He restated that health services are still provided by all MOH centers and facilities. ‘Taakkad’ centers have conducted 7,878,047 swaps, and ‘Tatatamman’ centers have received 2,075,068 beneficiaries. Similarly, the 937 Service Center has provided health and medical consultations to 28,949,823 beneficiaries. He mentioned that the total COVID-19 lab tests conducted in the Kingdom have mounted to 14,076,117. He restated that health services are still provided by all MOH centers and facilities. ‘Taakkad’ centers have conducted 7,878,047 swaps, and ‘Tatatamman’ centers have received 2,075,068 beneficiaries.
For his part, the MOC spokesman, Mr. Abdulrahman Al-Hussein, emphasized that since the beginning of the week, indoor orders returned to restaurants, cafes, entertainment facilities, cinemas, and sport centers. He added that adherence to the precautionary measures was observed, and hoped that this would continue over the coming period. There will be tight controls on all activities in the coming period, especially sectors where an increase in violations was noticed, such as: car showrooms, maintenance centers, stores with discounts, and others.
MOC has carried out over 185,000 inspection tours, and observed more than 8,000 violations. Instant fines were imposed on violating commercial establishments. Al-Hussein noted the past period has seen two unfortunate incidents he would never want to see happen again. The first one took place in a famous mall in Riyadh where a shopper was allowed to enter while carrying COVID-19. Her case was discovered by the joint monitoring teams of the Riyadh Municipality, MOC, and Security Patrols. She was asked to show her ‘Tawakkalna’ application, and when her infection was discovered, she was immediately escorted out of the mall. On the next day, one of the workers, who had been in contact with an infected case, was allowed into the mall. He was soon taken out of the mall, and the mall was closed.
The second incident took place in a large furniture store which allowed crowds of people to gather by its doors. The store had made offers and discounts that were marketed by a social media influencer. Control teams intervened after noticing the large numbers of people outside, and the store was closed soon after.
MOC calls on commercial establishments to adhere to the precautionary measures and activate ‘Tawakkalna’ application, as well as make sure all workers and customers wear masks and maintain social distancing. Moreover, MOC has launched the “Take a Step, Encourage them to Take the Vaccine” initiative with the aim of maintaining the safety and health of everyone and working in integration with other government agencies to prevent COVID-19 and encourage everyone to receive the vaccine.
This initiative stems from believing in the role of commercial establishments as the first line of defense against the pandemic and its effect on society. The initiative enables stores, markets, shops, restaurants, and cafes to offer discounts on goods, products, and services to those who have received the vaccine. These incentive discounts do not require a license or fees, and are not deducted from a facility’s annual balance.
MOC noticed that several facilities responded to the initiative in various areas including: e-commerce, cafes, gyms, perfumes, cosmetics, and others. Al-Hussein invited all commercial establishments to benefit from the initiative and encourage taking the vaccine and promote community health and safety. Noteworthy, this week, more than 400 violations were found for not measuring the body temperature of customers and employees. Furthermore, over 200 violations were reported for not wearing face masks, in addition to over 100 violations for not sterilizing surfaces and vehicles.