ABU DHABI 19 August 2020: Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, announced that the UAE has exceeded 6 million laboratory tests for the coronavirus, Covid-19.
Al Owais said that during the past two weeks there has been a noticeable increase in daily infection rates, which may be an indicator of an alarming increase in the number of cases in the coming period. He stressed the importance of adhering to all precautionary measures, including avoiding gatherings and visits and following physical distancing rules.
With regard to the third phase of clinical trials that are taking place in the UAE on a promising vaccine for Covid-19, the minister said that there has been tangible developments and that the results are very reassuring, with no side effects recorded among the volunteers. He thanked all of the participants and volunteers for assisting in the trials.
Dr Omar Al Hammadi, official spokesman for the UAE Government, said that the number of new daily tests has reached 59,759. These revealed 365 new cases. The latest figures bring the total number of recorded cases of Covid-19 in the UAE to 64,906.
Dr Al Hammadi also said that a further 115 people have recovered from the virus, bringing the total number of recoveries in the UAE to 57,909. He added that two deaths were recorded, bringing the total to 366. He pointed out that the number of patients currently receiving treatment stands at 6,631.
He pointed to the worrying increase in the number of daily cases among citizens and residents, by 136 cases, compared to the previous period. He attributed this to people attending gatherings and visits without following basic precautionary and preventive measures such as physical distancing and wearing masks.
Dr Al Hammadi warned people against using products that are being wrongly promoted for their ability to combat Covid-19 without any scientific basis. He gave as an example a product that releases chlorine dioxide gas, which is wrongly claimed to be able to eliminate the virus before it enters the human body.
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