Covid-19 pandemic is raging in 220 countries and territories; Cambodia has a record number of infections

The update at 5am on May 5th from the global statistics site Worldometers shows that the Covid-19 epidemic is raging in 220 countries and territories, infecting more than 154.9 million people and claiming the lives of more than 3.23 million patients. The number of recoveries reached over 133 million cases.

India continues to experience a terrible day with the number of new infections reaching nearly 382,700 and the number of deaths nearly 3,800. Thus, up to now, the country has a total of more than 20.6 million positive cases and over 226,100 deaths.

Brazil also faces serious spread and death when recording more than 65,400 new infections to the list of more than 14.8 million patients, and more than 2,760 victims to the total of 411,588 deaths from Covid-19.

Cambodia detects record number of new Covid-19 cases

The Khmer Times reported that health officialsCambodiarecorded 938 new infections on May 4, bringing the total number of Covid-19 infections to more than 16,300.

The capital Phnom Penh remains a Covid-19 "hotspot", with health authorities there recording 608 new cases in the past 24 hours. This is followed by Kandal province with 175 cases and Preah Sihanouk province with 77 cases. All of the new positive cases were related to a community event held in February 2021.

Dr. Hok Kim Cheng of the Cambodian Ministry of Health commented that the reason for the number of casesCovid-19The number of cases in this country has been increasing recently because Cambodian health officials have increased the use of rapid testing kits that can detect positive cases within 15 minutes.

“Most of the positive cases were found in residents living in the Red Zones, which are areas with high risk of infection. More than 10% of the samples collected in the Red Zones were positive. We are conducting more tests in this area. And although the three-week lockdown is not enough to test all residents in the Red Zones, testing is still ongoing,” Hok told the Phnom Penh Post.

Singapore extends Covid-19 quarantine period for visitors

The Singapore government on May 4 decided to increase the mandatory quarantine period for people entering from high-risk countries from 14 to 21 days, expected to start from May 8. In addition, the number of people allowed to gather in public places has been reduced to 5 people, and indoor gyms and fitness centers have been asked to temporarily suspend operations.

In another development, Singapore's Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on May 4 that vaccination is an effective method to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection, as well as prevent the disease from getting worse.

“Because they have received two doses of vaccine, nine out of 40 new cases have no symptoms or mild symptoms, so they do not need oxygen during treatment. Therefore, vaccination is still an effective tool to reduce the risk of infection. However, we do not rule out the possibility of applying a partial lockdown if the epidemic situation worsens,” Kim Yong told Reuters news agency.

US aims to vaccinate 70% of adults

According to AP news agency, US President Joe Biden on May 4 set a new vaccination target for the country's people, when he announced that 70% of adults in the US will receive the vaccine by July 2021.

“You need to get vaccinated. Even if your chances of getting the disease are extremely low, why not get vaccinated? Getting vaccinated against Covid-19 could save your life or the lives of those you love,” Mr. Biden said during a meeting at the White House.

Data collected by the AP news agency shows that about 56% of adults in the US have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and the number of people vaccinated each day in this country is about 965,000.

Germany eases restrictions for vaccinated people

According to Reuters news agency, the German government on May 4 approved new regulations on easing epidemic restrictions for people who have received two doses of Covid-19 vaccine and those who have recovered from the disease.

Accordingly, those in the above two cases can go shopping, go to the hair salon or travel. These people can also be exempt from complying with the night curfew. However, those who have been vaccinated still need to wear masks, as well as comply with the regulations on "social distancing" to prevent the epidemic.

Reuters news agency cited data from German health authorities as saying that about 28% of the country's population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. With the number of infections decreasing and the number of people vaccinated increasing, the German government hopes that the lockdown measures imposed since November 2020 will soon be lifted.