Delta wreaks havoc as Cyprus passes 1000 mark

The Republic of Cyprus reported 1081 new cases on Tuesday, as government officials confirmed that the Delta variant was the dominant bug ravaging the community and experts called on the public to be vigilant.

Health authorities on Tuesday reported two deaths and 1081 new COVID-19 cases, bringing total infections in the Republic to 86,185. A Cabinet meeting scheduled for Wednesday, where COVID measures were to be discussed, has been rescheduled for Friday.

Constantinos Tsioutis, the head of the government’s advisory team, called on the public to exercise caution when out and about, saying both vaccinated and unvaccinated persons ought to adhere to health protocols.

Tsioutis, who was a guest on state radio Wednesday morning, was asked whether numbers were known regarding the vaccination status of patients hooked up on life support.

“It is known that the majority of people admitted to hospitals are unvaccinated,” Tsioutis responded.

The positivity rate stood at 1.72% while 159 people were in hospitals, 41 of whom in serious condition. Authorities have not released data on how many people were being turned away at hospital front desks, with officials saying many cases did not need medical treatment.

Total COVID deaths since the pandemic broke out increased to 382, while recent deaths of patients who contracted coronavirus were not included in the latest numbers for cases where the official cause of death was not the virus.

Mixed messages for tests among vaccinated 

Tsioutis also spoke about a new campaign to inform people on issues regarding the pandemic and vaccinations, saying he understood some citizens had concerns about getting vaccinated.

He also urged everyone regardless of vaccination status to be on alert 2-3 days after going out or if they have been identified as a close contact of an infected person.

“A lot more people are going out and there are many social interactions where transmissions are bound to happen,” Tsioutis said.

But health ministry spokesperson Margarita Kyriakou, who spoke on the same program earlier, suggested vaccinated people need not rush to get tested.

“It would be cumbersome for vaccinated people to go and stand in line to get tested,” Kyriakou said.

Tsioutis also reiterated the government’s official position that current vaccines were effective in protecting against COVID and various mutations of the virus.

But experts and officials in the pharmaceutical industry have also weighed in on the vaccine issue, with reports saying a new shot on the way, which would cover mutations including Delta, could be made available to the public in the fall as a booster shot or third dose.