Good Day Members of the Media,
There were 762 test results received by the Ministry of Health yesterday (8 December 2020), and 10 were positive for COVID-19.
7 of the new cases are classified as local transmission with known contact/source with details as follows:
- 4 residents who were under quarantine as close contacts of known cases; and
- 3 residents who are associated with known clusters
The remaining 3 new cases are classified as under investigation. These cases are among residents with no history of travel or any currently identified links to other known cases or clusters
Bermuda now has 340 total confirmed positive cases. Their status is as follows:
·there are 103 active cases, of which
·101 are under public health monitoring and
·2 are hospitalized with 1 in critical care;
·a total of 228 have recovered, and
·the total deceased remains 9.
The average age of all confirmed positive cases is 47 years and the age range is 0 to 101 years.
To protect privacy and confidentiality, the average age and age range of the hospitalized cases will not be provided.
The average age of all deceased cases is 74 years and the age range is 57 to 91 years.
The source of all cases is as follows:
·129 are Imported
·163 are Local transmission, with known contact/source
·21 are Local transmission with an unknown contact/source, and
·27 are under investigation
As investigations proceed, transmission categories may change.
The seven-day average of our real time reproduction number is greater than 1 (1.41) and Bermuda’s current country status is “Clusters of Cases”.
The Minister of Health the Hon. Kim Wilson JP MP said: "As I mentioned during last night's press conference, there seems to be a discrepancy between the school environment and children's extra-curricular activities in terms of ensuring protective health measures are followed. In school, children are kept in their year group and class bubbles; something which the schools and teachers have worked extremely hard to maintain. But in sports clubs and during other extracurricular activities, I am hearing that children from many schools are meeting and interacting socially. This is making the bubbles that are created at school much less useful in preventing spread. Therefore I am appealing to parents and organizations that run these activities to please be mindful of this and act in accordance with the health guidelines posted on coronavirus.gov.bm.
"Given the health risks that come from mixing large groups of children from different schools and households, the Ministry of Health is currently reviewing its policies regarding holiday camps for children, given the current increase in cases of COVID-19 on the island."