'Government is being proactive'

The government has taken 34 mitigation measures in dealing with the covid19 virus, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh has said.

They began to be implemented over a month before the World Health Organisation declared the virus a pandemic,hr told Friday's virtual media briefing.

He said the first measure was the travel restrictions imposed on travellers coming from China, announced at the end of January, followed by restrictions on travel from several other countries.

He said another major step was the suspension of the cruise ship season, which he said was of great benefit, as people on cruise ships have been shown to have spread the virus.

CMO Dr Roshan Parasram said 1,473 tests have been done, with 1,226 unique patients and 247 repeat tests. He said 48 people had now been discharged, leaving ten people at the Couva Hospital and none at Caura.

Forty-nine people remain at convalescent centres, with 11 at Sangre Grande and 38 at the Home of Football in Couva.