Dominican Public Health will declare a state of national epidemic by Covid-19

The Minister of Public Health, Rafael Sánchez Cárdenas, said that the institution will mitigate a confirmatory resolution and regulation that declares the state of a national epidemic due to the health crisis of the Covid-19 coronavirus.

Sánchez Cárdenas, who offered a press conference from the Z 101 station, said that this resolution will also include measures regarding the use of masks to prevent contagion.

Legislators from the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) stated that the approval of a new extension of the state of emergency was not necessary since the General Health Law empowered the Minister of Public Health to establish provisions in the event of a national epidemic.

Article 149 of the General Health Law (number 42-01) states that “In the event of an epidemic or declared epidemic, or a disaster or other serious emergency, the Secretary of State for Public Health and Social Assistance may declare as an epidemic the national territory or any part of it and will authorize its local officials and all the institutions of the National Health System to adopt the necessary measures that it indicates, in order to avoid the epidemic, control the spread and achieve its eradication. extraordinary measures that the Secretary of State for Public Health and Social Assistance determines will expire thirty (30) days, counted from the last epidemic case of the disease.”

Bulletin 91 of the Ministry of Public Health indicated 24,645 confirmed cases with 540 new ones; 9,717 active cases; 14,293 recovered and 635 deaths.

He also reminded clinics and hospitals that they must report positive cases, deaths, and recoveries of Covid-19 because it sometimes takes up to months without providing these data to the National Health System.