Premier Alan Winde update on Coronavirus COVID-19 on 28 December

As of 1pm on 28 December, the Western Cape has 38 881 active COVID-19 infections with a total of 196 474 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 151 261 recoveries.

The Western Cape has recorded 122 additional deaths, bringing the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the province to 6332. We send our condolences to their loved ones at this time.

Additional data is available on the Western Cape COVID-19 data dashboard which also features active cases per sub-district, active cases per 100 000 and 7-day moving averages. Access the data dashboard here: http://bit.ly/2BsfdXt

​We must all work to slow the spread of COVID-19 in the Western Cape:

Over the weekend, the Western Cape surpassed the mark for 1 million COVID-19 tests conducted in the province (both public and private sector) since the start of the pandemic. Testing is an important tool in the management of this virus, but it can never give us a complete picture of the situation. Testing must always go hand in hand with personal responsibility, infection prevention strategies and quarantine and isolation in order to have the most significant impact on slowing the spread of the virus.

As it currently stands, the proportion of tests that return a positive result in the province is above 45%. This is higher than the proportion recorded during the peak of the first wave and is very concerning to us. We have also recorded more active cases and more hospitalisations in this second wave, than we did at the peak of the first.

The province, has since March, recorded almost 200 000 COVID-19 cases. While the vast majority of these have been able to recover, many have become seriously ill and required hospitalisation. Over 6300 people have now lost their lives to this virus in the Western Cape. We must all do everything we can to slow the spread of COVID-19, and to save lives.

You can do this by: avoiding large crowds of people and gatherings, ensuring that when you do go out, that you are wearing a mask, practicing social distancing and washing your hands regularly. Avoid crowded places, confined spaces and close contact. 

If you are experiencing symptoms such as a fever, sore throat, a cough or a loss of smell or taste, you must quarantine yourself and avoid contact with others until you are able to be tested. If you test positive, you must remain in isolation for a period of ten days from the onset of your symptoms so that you do not infect anyone else. If at any stage during your illness you experience trouble breathing, you must seek medical attention.

Due to the high demand for testing in the province at the moment, we have introduced a risk adjusted testing strategy in the Cape Metro region in order to ensure that testing is reserved for situations where there is the most risk.

The new testing criteria for the public sector in the Cape metro only, includes:

• People with coronavirus symptoms admitted to hospital
• People with coronavirus symptoms, who reside in large, group, confined spaces (old age homes, care homes, prisons etc)
• People with COVID-19 symptoms and who are at high risk of severe disease including those over 45 years old, and those with one or more of the following co-morbidities: diabetes, high blood pressure, heart, kidney or lung disease, cancer, TB and HIV (and not on ARV treatment)
• Pre-operative testing of asymptomatic patients awaiting surgery
• Natural deaths at home, where coronavirus symptoms were experienced prior to death
• All healthcare workers with COVID-19 symptoms and healthcare workers who are in quarantine and asymptomatic at day 7 (in order that they can return to work)
• Those who have previously tested positive but have developed new symptoms should only be tested 90 days after their first PCR test

In the rest of the province- anyone experiencing COVID-19 symptoms can still be tested.

Issued by: Western Cape Office of the Premier

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of South African Government.