Kenya on Monday confirmed another 148 Covid-19 cases, from a sample of 2,163 tested within a day, raising the number of declared infections since the first one last March to 172,639.
In a statement to media houses, the Ministry of Health said this placed the country’s positivity rate at 6.8 per cent and the number of tests conducted at 1,836,410.
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said the youngest patient was one year old and the oldest 87 years. Kenyans numbered 144 and foreigners four whereas 79 were male and 69 female.
In terms of case distribution by county, Nairobi accounted for 48 of the new infections, Homa Bay 46, Mombasa eight, Uasin Gishu seven, Machakos six, Kisumu five, Nakuru and Kiambu four each, Kilifi three, Kajiado, Marsabit, Nandi and Tharaka Nithi two each, and Narok, Trans Nzoia, Kisii, Laikipia, Turkana, Baringo, Bomet, Busia and Embu one each.
Deaths and recoveries
Twenty one more deaths raised the toll in Kenya to 3,308 but they were all late reports confirmed after the audit of facility records in April and May.
CS Kagwe further reported that 631 patients more patients had recovered from the disease, 496 of them under home-based isolation and case and 135 in hospital, raising the tally to 118,226.
As of Monday, a total of 1,147 patients had been hospitalised countrywide while 4,802 were being treated at home.
Of those in hospital, 102 patients were in intensive care units (ICU), 26 on ventilator support, 60 on supplemental oxygen and 16 under observation.
Another 95 patients were separately on supplemental oxygen, 88 of them being in general wards and seven in high dependency units (HDU).
Vaccination
In terms of vaccination, 975,835 people had taken the first dose by Monday, among them 166,304 health workers, 153,145 teachers, 295,660 people aged 58 years and above, 82,773 security officers and 277,953 ungrouped people.
CS Kagwe said a total of 13,194 persons had taken the second dose of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine being administered in Kenya.
Among them were 6,337 health workers, 2,411 people aged 58 years and above, 1,161 teachers, 714 security officers and 2,575, ungrouped people. BY DAILY NATION