By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize said in a statement the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in South Africa stands at 1 509 124.
This is an increase of 1676 new cases in the last 24 hours.
The cumulative total of tests conducted to date is 8 999 322 with 31 862 new tests recorded since the last report.
Mkhize said a further 144 deaths have been reported: Eastern Cape 7, Free State 25, Gauteng 14, Kwa-Zulu Natal 10, Limpopo 22, Mpumalanga 10, North West 41, Northern Cape 2 and Western Cape 13 which brings the total to 49 667 deaths.
The minister added that the recoveries now stand at 1 424 401, representing a recovery rate of 94%.
Vaccination Rollout
The number of health care workers vaccinated under the Sisonke Protocol is 52 647 as of 6 pm 25 February 2021.
Meanwhile the owner of South Africa’s largest health-insurance administrator, Discovery, says the country could record an additional 92 500 Covid-19 deaths by the end of the year if the nation’s vaccine program fails.
In the absence of an effective roll-out of inoculations and restrictions to halt super-spreader events during the Easter holidays in April, 92 500 people could die between February and December, Chief Executive Officer Adrian Gore said in an online presentation on Thursday. If the effect of super-spreader events is curbed by significant progress in the vaccine program, that number should halve.
“The vaccination program has to be successful and has to be rapid,” Gore said.
The government began administering coronavirus vaccines on February 17, dispensing Johnson & Johnson shots to health workers and top politicians. The process of inoculating two-thirds of the population of 60 million in order to achieve herd immunity may take 12 to 18 months.
The biggest challenge will be ensuring that high-risk groups are vaccinated by mid-winter, according to Gore.
“That would be a big victory,” he said.
With more than 1.5 million known coronavirus infections and almost 50 000 deaths recorded by the Health Ministry since March 2020, South Africa has been hit hardest by the pandemic in Africa. Discovery has set aside R3.4 billion in anticipation of future Covid-19 claims and insurance-policy lapses last year.