Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chairs urgent meeting on COVID-19 prevention and control

Chairing an urgent meeting held on the morning of April 30 at the Government Headquarters on measures to prevent and control the COVID-19 epidemic when the epidemic is developing complicatedly, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh clearly stated that there is still a mentality of negligence and lack of vigilance in epidemic prevention.

Attending the meeting this morning were Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam; Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long; Minister and Head of the Government Office Tran Van Son and leaders of several ministries and branches.

Report toPrime Minister, Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said that in Vietnam, after 34 days of not recording new cases in the community, on April 29, 2021, the Vietnam infectious disease surveillance system recorded a cluster of COVID-19 cases related to an entry case from Japan after completing centralized quarantine in Da Nang to Ha Nam province.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said that the results of testing, analyzing and evaluating the relationship between this patient and the passengers on the same flight from Japan to Da Nang, from Da Nang after completing quarantine to Ha Nam, and at the patient's place of residence showed that there was a complex relationship.

At the place of residence, through tracing results, the patient had contact, ate and met friends and acquaintances on April 22 and 23, 2021. Those who had contact with the patient then returned to other provinces and cities by means of transport such as airplanes to Ho Chi Minh City; by car to Hanoi and Hung Yen.

For Ha Nam province, the Ministry of Health requested to urgently trace and quarantine all cases in close contact with infected cases (F1); review cases in contact with close contacts (F2), and request home quarantine.

Regarding the solutions being implemented, Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long commented: “We will continue to research and study carefully, re-evaluate all related issues, including issues of professional and technical management, to assess the situation. When F0 is detected, we must act very quickly. At the same time, we must continue to strengthen the management of entry areas and quarantine areas. If the Central Government closely monitors, it will be more convenient and then we will be ready to trace and isolate.”

Based on the assessment of the members of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated that thanks to the efforts and determination of the entire political system in the context of complicated developments in surrounding countries, especially countries in the region, Vietnam continues to basically control the epidemic. However, in some places, there is still a mentality of negligence, subjectivity, lack of vigilance, and failure to strictly implement regulations on epidemic prevention and control.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated that the highest goal is to protect the health and safety of the people and the community, while still achieving the dual goal of "effectively preventing the epidemic and developing the economy and society"; successfully protecting the elections of the National Assembly and People's Councils at all levels on May 23, 2021.

The Prime Minister requested: “We must be more urgent, faster and more rapid in tracing, detecting, isolating and quarantining to overcome the consequences of the recent cases that have occurred. The goal is to quickly overcome the consequences by all means, by all methods and quickly so that we can overcome them promptly and effectively, with the guiding principle of continuing to implement the spirit of fighting the epidemic as well as fighting the enemy, especially the border provinces to control and grasp the situation and come up with appropriate solutions according to the regulations and rules we have. Second, we must heighten vigilance, detect early, isolate quickly, treat actively, handle thoroughly, and quickly stabilize the situation. Third, we must check and trace, and strictly manage with the spirit of "going to every alley, knocking on every door, checking every subject".

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh noted that it is necessary to base on the actual situation to have more drastic and positive solutions. The regulations are complete, always closely following reality, urgently supplementing regulations and rules, and propagating to people to participate in fighting the epidemic like fighting the enemy. In the organization and implementation of regulations and rules, it is necessary to tighten them even more, organize them better and more effectively. Agencies, units and localities must all take drastic action, not allowing subjectivity, negligence and loss of vigilance in epidemic prevention.

“I request that the authorities consider praising agencies, units, and localities that have done well, strictly implemented measures to prevent incidents from occurring, and must definitely review the individual and collective responsibilities of places where the epidemic has occurred recently if the cause is subjective negligence, lack of vigilance, and failure to strictly implement measures. Therefore, these places must be strictly handled,” the Prime Minister emphasized./.