The number of fresh coronavirus cases in Pakistan almost doubled to 624 on Friday, compared to a day ago, according to the data shared by the National Institute of Health (NIH). The institute also registered 11 virus-led casualties during the same time period. The NIH said 16,299 diagnostics tests were conducted across the country in the last 24 hours which resulted in an escalated 3.83% positivity ratio. Currently, 142 Covid-19 patients are receiving healthcare in critical care units of different hospitals all over the country. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic at least 30,520 people have lost their lives to the disease.
According to the data shared by the NIH on Wednesday, 94% of the population eligible for vaccination has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine since the start of the vaccination campaign up to August 10. Out of these, 88% of the people took the second dose of the vaccine too. Moreover, around 30% of the eligible population have received booster doses against the virus. All citizens aged 12 and above can register themselves on nims.nadra.gov.pk for their doses or just walk into the nearest vaccination centers to get jabbed. Moreover, people over the age of 18 with a valid national identity card can register themselves for a dose by sending their CNIC number to 1166 (free SMS). People who have completed their vaccination course are eligible to receive a booster dose after a gap of six months. Meanwhile, travelers and citizens planning a visit can get two additional doses of vaccine free of cost with a minimum gap of around 21-28 days from the previous dose. Health officials have asked parents to only administer Pfizer vaccine to teenagers between the ages of 12-18. The rest of the population has been allowed to receive Sinopharm, Sinovac, Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines/booster doses in any combination. Those who have recently recovered from the novel coronavirus are advised to wait around 28 days before getting jabbed.
