Key points and live updates from the COVID-19 media conference featuring Prime Minister Mia Mottley and Minister of Health Jeffrey Bostic.
Minister of Health Jeffrey Bostic
- March 19-April 18, 2021
- 13 439 tests
- 272 positive cases
- April 19-May 18
- 15 001 tests
- 191 positive
- May 19-June 18
- 15 522 tests
- 66 positive cases
- Over that period, the Best-dos Santos lab conducted 43 962 tests
- 529 positive cases
- Last double digit cases on May 5, 14 cases
- About six weeks with single digit cases
- A good sign for the country.
Vaccination Update:
- On March 19, Government administered 60 206 first doses of Astra-Zeneca Vaccine
- By June 18, 91 569 received the first dose and 65395 are fully vaccinated
- This will pave the way for some of the things to follow.
COVID Variants
- Three people tested positive for the Delta Variant. These include a father, 8-year-old son who arrived on April 21.
- The third person was a member of a group who arrived on May 14.
- There was one positive case of the Gamma variant; the person arrived on May 17.
- All four were placed in immediate quarantine and then isolation at Harrison Point, after the results were received from CARPHA.
- There are no cases of any of these variants in the local community.
- 12 samples were sent to a lab in Canada.
- 88 more are to be sent.
- The United Kingdom is willing to provide assistance with testing and sequencing.
- PAHO provided primers for testing of variants.
- The positivity rate is 0.2% and we are at 4/100 000 new cases.
Prime Minister Mia Mottley
- The curfew in Barbados ends on June 30 2021.
- Government will be setting up a bubble with countries deemed safe by the Ministry of Health.
- Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Anguilla, Montserrat, British Virgin Islands, Turks & Caicos Islands, Cayman Islands and Bermuda
- After bilateral talks, hope to add St Vincent and St Lucia
- Bonaire, St Eustatius, Saba and St Martin may also be added
- Government offering assistance to the entertainment sector.
- $10 000 for bandleaders with bands in both Junior and Grand Kadooment
- $7 500 for bandleaders with one band.
- Calypso tents can resume with live streaming on TV8
- Government will underwrite the costs
- $5 000 for promoters
- Negotiations are continuing with sporting organisations, but July 16 is tipped as the date for sporting activity to resume with spectators.
- Government will put a cap on VAT collected if oil prices continue to go up.
