HCMC – The Ministry of Health reported 15,707 fresh cases of Covid-19 this evening, January 22, including 49 imported cases and 15,658 locally-infected cases, down 243 cases versus the previous day.

Hanoi continued to have the most infections, at 2,945, followed by Danang with 973 cases, Haiphong with 745 cases, and Hung Yen with 693 cases. Besides, Ben Tre ranked first in the Mekong Delta by the daily case number for three consecutive days, at 555 cases today. Binh Phuoc, Quang Ngai, and Thanh Hoa recorded over 440 cases each. The remaining localities each had fewer than 400 cases. The ministry also reported two more Omicron cases today, raising the country’s total number of Omicron cases to 135, mostly in Hanoi, Quang Nam, and HCMC. In the day, more than 3,500 coronavirus patients were declared free of the disease, while 153 other patients died of the virus, bringing the country’s total recoveries and fatalities to over 1.8 million and over 36,500, respectively. In related news, the Hanoi-based Duc Giang General Hospital has opened a clinic to treat people having long Covid. The facility will be put into service next week, according to Nguyen Van Thuong, director of the hospital. The health official said many people have a demand for healthcare services after their recovery from Covid, especially those suffering from severe Covid and having to receive intensive care. They could experience post-Covid effects such as shortness of breath, chest pain, stress, fatigue, headache, and long coughing among others. These people should receive post-Covid medical care as soon as possible to be able to return to their normal life. Accordingly, the hospital started making preparations one month ago to meet the demand for post-Covid services in the capital city. The clinic would treat post-Covid syndrome and give guidance on nutrition and physical therapy to recovered Covid patients. This is the first public hospital under the management of the Hanoi health authority to offer the services. The hospital also admits and treat patients with moderate and severe Covid in the city.