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41 new cases ID’d in NMI
Eight hospitalized; 3.2K recoveries as of Jan. 12
Forty-one individuals have been confirmed positive for COVID-19 through surveillance and travel testing on Jan. 15, bringing the CNMI total to 3,946 cases since March 28, 2020, according to the latest news release from the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp.
In the news release issued late Sunday night, CHCC said that all 41 cases have been isolated and are being actively monitored, and the vaccination statuses of the cases were pending verification as of Sunday night.
By identification method, 26 were identified through contact tracing, six through community testing, and nine through travel testing.
Also, as of Jan. 16, eight individuals have been hospitalized as a result of COVID-19, five of them being unvaccinated and three vaccinated. Right now, one of the patients is on a ventilator and two have been discharged.
As of Jan. 12, there have been 3,206 recoveries and 431 active cases of the cases identified since Oct. 28, 2021.
For the latest in testing efforts, CHCC reported that 245 COVID-19 tests were conducted on Jan. 15: 163 were conducted through community-based testing, and 82 were conducted at the COVID-19 Community Center in Kobler for referrals only. To register for COVID-19 testing, CHCC asks you to visit https://covidtesting.chcc.health.
As of Jan. 12, there have been 3,206 recoveries, 431 active cases, and 18 COVID-19-related deaths of the cases identified since Oct. 28, 2021.
In related news, CHCC chief executive officer Esther L. Muña said during a virtual news briefing last Friday that CHCC will continue to provide community testing, COVID-19 vaccines, and COVID-19 therapeutics to those in the CNMI that need them. Given the CHCC is the CNMI’s sole hospital, she again asks the community to keep acting collectively in efforts against COVID-19.
“I want to remind everyone that we are a single-hospital health system. …We are working closely with our federal colleagues to be prepared for an increase in hospitalizations, and we really need the community to continue to come together [and] help each other reduce hospitalizations,” said Muña.
To do your part in preventing hospitalizations, Muña urged the community to stay up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations, including booster shots if eligible, especially if you are over 60-years-old or have chronic health conditions. She also advised following the “3 W’s”, and if symptomatic, to see your health care provider right away to get screened and tested.
If you test positive for COVID-19, you may be eligible for monoclonal antibody treatment or for other COVID-19 treatments given soon after infection. Muña said you can get assessed for MAB eligibility at the COVID-19 Community Center in Kobler.
Muña said that testing, vaccines, and treatments will continue to be made available to those in the CNMI who need them. She added that CHCC is monitoring for the omicron variant, and that the hospital and the Alternate Care Site continue to prepare for any new surge of COVID-19 cases.
