POLITICS

Only 210 new Covid-19 cases reported – NICD

Institute says the test positivity rate is now down to 1.4%

Latest confirmed cases of Covid-19 in South Africa

18 October 2021

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), a division of the National Health Laboratory Service, continues to provide laboratory-based surveillance to inform the public health response towards COVID-19 in South Africa.

Today the institute reports 210 new COVID-19 cases that have been identified in South Africa, which brings the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases to 2 916 803. This increase represents a 1.4% positivity rate.

As per the National Department of Health, a further 7 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported, bringing total fatalities to 88 619 to date.

18 189 273 tests have been conducted in both public and private sectors as per the table below.

Sector

Total tested

New tested

PRIVATE

                 9 802 889

54%

9 173

61%

PUBLIC

8 386 384

46%

5 853

39%

Total

18 189 273

 

15 026

 

PROVINCIAL BREAKDOWN

The majority of new cases today are from Gauteng Province (37%), followed by KwaZulu-Natal (19%), and Western Cape (16%). Free State accounted for 7%; North West accounted for 6%; Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga accounted for 5% each; Limpopo and Northern Cape each accounted for 2% of today’s new cases.

The cumulative number of cases by province is shown in the table below:  

Province

Total cases for 17 October 2021

Adjusted numbers after harmonisation

Updated total cases on 17 October 2021

New cases on 18 October 2021

Total cases for 18 October 2021

Percentage total

Eastern Cape

291966

0

291966

14

291980

10.0

Free State

162819

0

162819

31

162850

5.6

Gauteng

918498

0

918498

38

918536

31.5

KwaZulu-Natal

514582

0

514582

41

514623

17.6

Limpopo

122127

0

122127

2

122129

4.2

Mpumalanga

151595

0

151595

11

151606

5.2

North West

150280

0

150280

15

150295

5.2

Northern Cape

92000

-1

91999

15

92014

3.2

Western Cape

512726

1

512727

43

512770

17.6

Total

2916593

0

2916593

210

2916803

100.0

THE 7-DAY MOVING AVERAGE NUMBER OF NEW CASES BY PROVINCE
The proportion of positive new cases/total new tested today is 1.4% which is lower than yesterday (1.8%). The 7-day average is 2.1% today, which is lower than yesterday. The 7-day moving average daily number of cases has increased.

For more detailed information, visit the GIS Dashboard.

HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS
There has been an increase of 24 hospital admissions in the past 24 hours. The following table is a summary of reported COVID-19 admissions by sector.

Sector

Facilities Reporting

Admissions
to Date

Died to Date

Currently Admitted

Private

258

200,227

36,936

2,906

Public

408

232,835

56,735

2,029

TOTAL

666

433,062

93,671

4,935

VACCINE UPDATE
For updates on the national vaccine programme, click here.

Thank you for your interest and remember that adhering to preventative measures such as

Getting vaccinated for COVID-19,

Wearing your mask properly to cover your nose,

Opting to gather in ventilated spaces,

Avoid unnecessary gatherings,

Keeping a social distance of one meter or more, and

Washing your hands regularly in the day with soap and water,

helps to limit your risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19.

For more information on COVID-19, click here.

Issued by Sinenhlanhla Jimoh, Senior Communications Manager, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, 18 October 2021