The Ministry of Health has recorded 198 new cases of COVID-19 for the 24 hour period that ended at 8am yesterday.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says 52 cases are from the Western Division and 146 cases are from the Central Division.

Doctor Fong says there has been 516 new recoveries reported since the last update, which means that there are now 20,271 active cases.

He says 11,684 active cases are in the Central Division, 8,540 in the Western Division, one in the Northern Division (Nabouwalu) and 46 active cases in the Eastern Division (Kadavu).

The Ministry is currently reviewing and reconciling the active case database with recoveries and as a result they expect the recovery numbers to increase in the coming weeks.

There have been 43,224 cases during the outbreak that started in April .

The Ministry has recorded one COVID-19 death for August 16th.

He adds this death which was previously under investigation in the Eastern Division has now been classified as a COVID-19 death.

A detailed investigation by the ministry’s clinical team has determined that the death was caused by COVID-19.

She was a 63-year-old woman from Rakiraki Village, in Yale, Kadavu.

She was declared dead on arrival by the attending medical officer at the Vunisea Hospital in Kadavu.

The Permanent Secretary says this means that she died at home or on her way to the hospital.

She was not vaccinated.

There have been 2 more deaths of COVID-19 positive patients.

However, these deaths have been classified as non-COVID deaths by their doctors.

Dr Fong adds there are currently 322 COVID-19 patients admitted to hospital.

118 patients are admitted at the Lautoka Hospital, 38 patients are admitted at the FEMAT field hospital, and 166 admitted at CWM hospital, St Giles, and Makoi.

37 patients are considered to be in severe condition, and 14 are in critical condition.