Health Protection Agency (HPA) has begun collecting random samples from addicts at the drug rehabilitation centre and residents of Himmafushi, Kaafu Atoll.
The decision was made after three addicts at the drug rehabilitation centre in Himmafushi tested positive for COVID-19. The island is currently placed under monitoring condition.
HPA said it is believed a patient taking treatment at the centre to have infected three other individuals. HPA said one of the patients taking treatment at the facility had visited a household of a COVID-19 patient.
Following three confirmed cases from the centre, HPA has also collected samples from direct contacts of the three patients. Samples were also collected from addicts and inmates in Asseyri Prison on the island, in addition to the samples collected from addicts in the rehabilitation centre.
The three positive cases from Himmafushi were identified as part of the efforts of HPA to take random samples to identify the current situation of the community spread in the Maldives and mitigate the transfer of the virus to island communities. HPA said another reason for random sampling is that a large majority of the people testing positive in the Maldives are asymptomatic.
National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) said testing people in state welfare and detention facilities is a key focus. In this regard, random samples have been collected from Maafushi Prison and the Centre for People with Special Needs in Guraidhoo, Kaafu Atoll.