Cape Town – For the second day in succession, less than 1 000 new Covid-19-related cases were recorded in South Africa.
A total of 856 new cases have been identified since the last report, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said in a statement on Tuesday night, compared to 566 yesterday. The cumulative number of Covid-19 cases in South Africa has risen to 1 513 959.
A further 194 Covid-19-related deaths have been reported (84 and 52 deaths were recorded the past two days). No fatalities occurred in Mpumalanga and North West, but KwaZulu-Natal recorded 80 deaths, followed by Gauteng (43), Free State (29), Limpopo (15), Western Cape (12), Eastern Cape (8) and Northern Cape (7).
This brings the total number of deaths to 50 271, with recoveries now standing at 1 433 320, representing a recovery rate of 94.6%
The cumulative total of tests conducted to date is 9 114 026, with 23 753 new tests recorded since the last report.
The number of healthcare workers vaccinated under the Sisonke Protocol is 76 037 as of 6.30pm today.
A group of pharmacists have joined the legal bandwagon seeking to get blanket approval for the use of ivermectin, currently only registered in SA for veterinary and agricultural use, for the prevention and treatment of Covid-19.
The application by the eight pharmacists, who operate under the Pharma Valu chain of pharmacies, will be heard along with three others instituted by AfriForum, the ACDP and a group of 55 doctors callings themselves the “I can make a difference doctors and medical practitioners group” at the end of March.
“The legal representatives made submissions to the judge regarding the urgency and public importance of the matters. They have been allocated three court days for hearing, beginning on March 29,” said attorney Kuben Moodley, who represents the doctors.
Meanwhile, a Japanese woman in her sixties died from a brain haemorrhage three days after receiving a Pfizer coronavirus vaccination, the health ministry said on Tuesday, adding that there may not be a link between the two.
The woman was vaccinated on Friday and is suspected to have suffered a brain haemorrhage three days later. It was Japan's first reported death after a vaccination.
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