Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced 8 more cases of coronavirus cases in Kenya.
Speaking on Monday during a press briefing at Afya House, the CS said this now brings the total number of coronavirus cases in Kenya to 50.
“The eight cases are spread out in Kitui (1), Nairobi (6) and Mombasa (1),” he said.
According to CS Kagwe, 88 samples were tested from close contacts of the previous 42 confirmed cases and out of this number six were confirmed positive.
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One of the confirmed cases is a patient at the Aga Khan Hospital.
The CS further stated that tracing of contacts of the 50 patients is ongoing and the total number of close contacts now stands at 1474.
Out of this, 231 have been discharged after completing mandatory 14-day follow up,” CS Kagwe said, adding that teams are now monitoring 1211 close contacts.
1005 people have so far been tested for coronavirus.
Nairobi County still leads with 37 cases, Kilifi 6, Mombasa 4, Kajiado, Kwale and Kitui each having one case.
“This means the virus is now being spread through community transmission and it calls for more personal responsibility,” CS Kagwe added.
Among other interventions put in place is an advisory for Nairobians to cease travelling to upcountry during this period as most of the elderly live there.
Employers have also been asked to release employees at 4 pm, to allow them to travel to their homes before the curfew time.
Kagwe in addition warned that the 4 pm directive does not give employers the right to reduce the salaries of employees.
The government announced on Sunday that at least 1,000 medics will be hired in the next week to handle the rising number of coronavirus infection.
The new medics include nurses, clinical officers, lab technologists and doctors, among others.