BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – The Barbados government is urging people “to come forward and present themselves to be vaccinated” as the island confirmed a cluster of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases at a business enterprise.
Health and Wellness Minister, retired Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic,Health and Wellness Minister, retired Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic, said that three persons who had been sent for assessment at the Harrison Point Isolation Facility had tested positive for the virus, along with two family members.
He told reporters that there were seven COVID-19 cases at the establishment and that approximately 40 people were currently in quarantine, after aggressive contact tracing by health officials.
Bostic also indicated that all staff members were being tested for the virus and he believed authorities would be able to contain the cluster “in the coming days”.
He warned Barbadians that the cases were proof COVID-19 was still present noting also that none of the persons who tested positive at the institution was vaccinated.
“I would like to take this opportunity to urge persons to come forward and present themselves to be vaccinated. It is important for persons to take advantage of this because this is the best way of containing this virus, so that we can breathe a lot better and be able to do the things we are accustomed to doing that we haven’t been able to do in the last 18 months.
“The impact of the virus on persons who have been fully vaccinated is a reduced impact. Even persons who have only had one so far, they are provided with a level of protection from the virus that is still commendable, but we want for persons who have not been vaccinated to come forward,” he added.
The Health and Wellness Minister has refused to disclose the name of the business establishment stating that it was not the Ministry’s policy to reveal the name of private companies or businesses with COVID-19 cases.
“Our policy has been very consistent in terms of the naming of businesses. When we name an institution, you would recognize that it is a government institution. The companies or the businesses themselves sometimes issue statements and make that known to the public. I want to continue in that vein,” he added.
On Thursday, Barbados reported five new COVID-19 cases, two women and three men, from the 599 tests, adding that 15 people are currently in isolation.
It said that the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases since March 2020 is 4,057 including 1,963 females. There have been 47 deaths.
Health officials have administered 93,303 first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine under the National Vaccination Program, and 67,756 people have received second doses and are fully vaccinated.
