National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) has announced it has begun collecting samples of the elderly from households in Male' City.
Speaking at daily press briefing held at the NEOC, Dr. Nazla Rafeeq from the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) said samples are taken from the elderly, their caretakers and people who visit the households of the elderly for various reasons as part of the efforts to identify the probability of the elderly getting infected. Dr. Nazla said although many households are raising concerns quoting the elderly are always staying indoors, authorities must evaluate the current situation of the transmission amongst the elderly. She further said a large majority of the elderly experience other diseases which causes their conditions to worsen when infected with COVID-19.
The doctor said the authorities have made the decision to ensure the elderly receives proper care and treatment in time should they get infected with COVID-19. She called on the public to support the efforts of the Health Protection Agency (HPA) in collecting samples of the elderly.