Posted on 08/01/21
| News Source: i24
Nachman Ash says booster shot for older adults can help reduce number of patients in serious condition
Israeli Health Ministry Director-General Nachman Ash said on Sunday morning that "we do not see a slowdown in morbidity" as the positive test rate passed the 3 percent mark.
The percentage of positive tests stood at 3.17 percent out of 66,449 tests administered on Saturday, according to Health Ministry data, as the country takes measures to try and control an outbreak of the highly infectious delta variant of COVID-19.
Israel on Sunday registered 2,080 new daily COVID-19 cases with 212 patients listed in serious or critical condition and 37 people on respirators.
A total of 6,474 fatalities have been recorded since the pandemic first arrived to Israel.
A campaign began on Sunday to jab 1.5 million adults over the age of 60 with a third vaccine dose in the course of the next eight days as part of the effort to curb the spread of the delta variant and prevent further restrictions that would further disrupt daily life and economic activity despite more than 5.3 million people already receiving both vaccine doses.
Israel is the first country to offer a third vaccine dose on a wide scale following its earlier campaign to give the booster shot to severely immunocompromised adults.
Ash said that the booster shot would assist in the fight against the virus.
“It’s expected to reduce the number of patients in serious condition in the coming weeks,” Ash said.