Daily COVID Tracker: NCDC logs 61 infections in 10 states, zero fatalities

Nigeria on Thursday recorded 61 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Friday. 

Greece hit unvaccinated residents with COVID restrictions

Greece has imposed restrictions on people who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 owing to a surge in infections.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said from Monday, unvaccinated people will be denied access into indoor spaces, including restaurants, cinemas, museums and gyms, even if they test negative for COVID.

“This is indeed a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Mitsotakis said, adding that “Greece is mourning unnecessary losses because it simply does not have the vaccination rates of other European countries”.

Nigeria reports 61 COVID cases

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says 61 cases have been reported across the country.

The agency in its update for November 18, says the cases were reported in nine states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

The states with the fresh infections are Gombe (16), Taraba (15), Zamfara (14), FCT (7), Kano (2), Lagos (2), Rivers (2), while Bauchi, Delta, and Katsina reported one case each.

The NCDC said 47 people were discharged after they recovered from the infection. Meanwhile, no COVID fatality was reported on Thursday.

A total of 213,464 confirmed cases, 206,292 discharges and 2,973 deaths have now been reported across the country.

‘Anti-vaxxers using bribery and fake certificates to avoid vaccination’

The pharmacy and aged-care sectors in Australia have warned that anti-vaxxers use fake certificates including bribery to escape public health laws on COVID-19.

They said if the situation is not immediately checked, it “will likely become more prevalent”.

“Penalties, akin to those that apply to quarantine breachers and those who ignore mandatory vaccination orders, should also apply to those seeking to bribe a vaccinator to falsify records or to manipulate records, either digitally or by having someone else get vaccinated in their place,” they said.

Japan to ease COVID restrictions on events centres, eateries

Japan says it will make a decision on removing COVID curbs on large-scale events including restaurants on Friday.

“We will take every possible steps to protect the lives and health of people even under the next wave of infections so people can continue to lead safe and secure everyday lives,” Daishiro Yamagiwa, economic revitalisation minister in charge of the COVID response, said.

Germany to impose COVID restrictions on unvaccinated

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the country will introduce COVID-19 restrictions on unvaccinated citizens.

In regions where there are more than three COVID-19 patients in hospital per 100,000 inhabitants, only the vaccinated and those who have recovered from the infection will be allowed to access public places.

“Many of the measures we are announcing would not be necessary if more people were vaccinated,” Merkel told Reuters.