Pakistan records 10 Covid deaths in a day – The Express Tribune

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A healthcare worker administers a dose of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine at a vaccination centre in Karachi, Pakistan, January 16, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro

Positivity ratio reaches 3.28% after 737 test positive in 24 hours

News Desk
July 16, 2022

At least 10 people succumbed to the coronavirus in Pakistan in 24 hours, according to the daily statistics released by the National Health Institute (NIH) on Saturday.

A total of 737 new cases emerged against a total of 22,451 tests conducted in the last day, bringing the Covid positivity ratio to 3.28%.

Among the death reported, nine occurred in Sindh and one in Punjab.

The number was slightly lower than that reported a day earlier, when 779 people had tested positive.

Meanwhile, 189 patients remained in critical care.

According to the government’s Covid statistics, Pakistanhas recorded a total of 1,544,910 cases, with 30,428 deaths since the pandemic started in 2020.

Read Covid test made mandatory for returning Hajj pilgrims

The data further showed that 128,194,865 individuals have been completely vaccinated against the virus, and 31,012,576 have received their anti-Covid booster jab.

‘Covid here to stay’

To learn more about the virus and its new variants, The Express Tribune interviewed Dr. Faheem Younus, the chief of infectious diseases at the University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health.

According to Dr Younus, Covid variants remained an area of uncertainty.

“We know that neutralizing antibody titers are lower in individuals, who get exposed to BA.4 and BA.5 variants. To me, the increasing immune evasion appears to be one of the greatest threats these variants pose,” he said.

The doctor maintained that “the best strategy” to prevent future waves is to maximize vaccinations – including boosters – and not focus so much on restrictions and lockdowns.

“Future spikes in cases are likely, but the severity of those waves will depend on the vaccination, immune status of the host, and the virulence of the variant,” he added.

Commenting on Covid in Pakistan, Dr Yunus said that Pakistan was now at 57% fully vaccinated, which amounted to almost 126 million people, a feat that was “commendable”.

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