HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Ho Chi Minh City’s authorities have tightened COVID-19 preventionmeasures by setting up 25 task forces in 21 districts and Thu Duc city,and improving testing capacity to 1 million samples per day.

The taskforces led by the Department of Health will focus on high-risk areas suchas industrial parks, export processing zones and high-tech zones.

Twenty-two ofthe task forces will work with leaders of the People’s Committees in thedistricts and Thu Duc city to enhance prevention measures in thoseareas. The other three task forces will support management boards in exportprocessing zones, industrial parks and high-tech parks, including theQuang Trung Software Park.

Task forcemembers include representatives of the health department, the HCM CityCentre for Disease Control (HCDC), students at medical universities, andmembers of youth unions.

Over the nexttwo weeks, the health department will improve testing capacity to 1 million aday, especially in isolation and locked-down areas, to preventcross-infection in these areas. 

The cityis piloting a programme to conduct rapid testing in the high-riskareas in order to detect positive cases as early as possible.

If thereare negative results from the rapid tests, pooled samples of five to 10will be tested by the more reliable and precise Realtime-PCR tests, with a goalof testing 1 million pooled samples per day, according to the department.

The advantageof rapid antigen testing is that it is convenient to use, gives quick resultswithin 30 minutes, and can be used outside the laboratory to helpdetect suspected cases. The results of rapid antigen testingare, however, not as accurate as the RT-PCR method, which takes fourto six hours to get results. 

Tests byJuly 5

The city isspeeding up screening tests in high-risk areas, ensuring quickresults of less than 12 hours. It has already started taking testingsamples from people in residential areas, industrial parks, export processingzones and hi-tech parks. They aim to test 5 millionpeople by July 5.

To reduce therisk of cross-infection at concentrated medical isolation facilities, theMinistry of Health has issued specific guidelines for F1 cases (close contactsof COVID-19 patients) to isolate at home instead of in centralisedquarantine areas.

The city hasurged businesses to pay for the costs of COVID-19 rapid tests foremployees once a week.

It hasalso ordered the health sector officials to make their decisions onlocking down areas within one hour after a COVID-19 positive test isconfirmed in an area. 

Protectionmeasures for health workers involved in examination and treatmentof COVID patients must be ensured, and cross-infection at hospitalsmust be prevented.

The city plansto expand concentrated isolation areas to meet demand if the numberof F1 cases increases rapidly. Hotels will also be used as isolation areas forF1 cases who will have to pay a fee to stay there.

The city hasdeveloped a scenario of 10,000 cases, including preparation for oxygenreserves, medical equipment and purchases of additional equipment fortreatment.

The city’svaccine-negotiation working group has been working with partners andmanufacturers to speed up the progress of vaccine purchases. It has set agoal that by the end of the year about two-thirds of the city’s population willbe vaccinated.

The city isalso enhancing prevention measures at supermarkets, wholesale marketsand traditional markets. Any place considered unsafe will be temporarilyclosed.

Dong Nairequires negative test

From July 5until further notice, all people entering Dong Nai province from HCM Cityand Binh Duong province to work are required to have a certificate fora negative COVID-19 test taken within the last seven days beforeentry, as ordered by Dong Nai authorities.

Since thefourth wave in late April, Binh Duong has recorded more than 300community-transmitted cases and HCM City nearly 4,000.

Workers havebeen urged to rent an accommodation near their workplaces in Dong Nai province, HCMCity or Binh Duong province, instead of travelling back and forth daily.

Companies andproduction establishments in these localities should also arrange for workersto temporarily stay at the company under the guidance of the management boardsof industrial parks.

People fromHCM City and Binh Duong who are transiting through Dong Nai Province to otherprovinces are only required to complete a health declaration form at theprovincial border (or previously on the Zalo app) and are not allowed tostop in Dong Nai to eat, drink or gather. They do not need to show anegative test result.

HCM City onTuesday extended its current social distancing period until further noticeas part of its effort to curb the highly contagious Delta variant andthe increasing number of COVID-19 cases.

Since thefourth outbreak began at the end of April, the city as of June 30 afternoonhad recorded nearly 4,000 locally transmitted cases and 10 deaths./.