148 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded in Latvia, taking the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic to 3,204.
The Disease Prevention and Control Center (SPKC) said 4,759 tests were conducted during the previous 24-hour period and that 3.1% of tests conducted were positive. This last figure is becoming increasingly important as a measure of Latvia's ability to control the spread of the cornavirus, but in recent days has steadily climbed.
Pēdējās 24h veikti 4759 COVID-19 izmeklējumi, reģistrēti 148 jauni inficēšanās gadījumi, 1 persona mirusi (vecuma grupā no 30 līdz 35). Latvijā kopā veikti 382 949 izmeklējumi, saslimušas 3204 personas un 1329 izveseļojušās.
— SPKC.gov.lv (@SPKCentrs) October 16, 2020
In total 382,949 tests have been carried out since February 29.
So far 1,329 patients have recovered from infection and 42 have died. The latest patient to die was aged 30-35 years.
Data from the National Health Service (NVD) show that the number of patients being treated in hospitals fell slightly. Currently, 63 patients are being treated in hospitals, down from 70 on Thursday. 54 patients show moderate symptoms of the disease, nine have severe symptoms.
Jauni COVID-19 gadījumi stacionāros – 6. Kopā stacionāros ārstējas 63 pacienti: 54 ar vidēji smagu slimības gaitu, 9 ar smagu slimības gaitu. Kopā no stacionāra izrakstīti 277 pacienti.
— NVD (@VMNVD) October 16, 2020
On October 16 Lithuania also recorded a record number of cases (281) for the second day in a row, while Estonia recorded just 37 cases.
On October 15 the 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 of population was 58.2 in Latvia, 64.8 in Lithuania and 43.5 in Estonia, according to data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
The threshold for the introduction of compulsory self-isolation upon arrival in Latvia is now pegged to Latvia's own rate last Friday of 40.4. The rate will be updated later on Friday.
All arrivals must fill in a special electronic form prior to arrival, as outlined in our earlier story.
COVID-19 information
A summary in English of the latest COVID-19 situation including restrictions in place and rules on public assembly is available at this special government website.
The number for medical emergencies is 113, the number for enquiring about a COVID-19 test if you have developed some potential symptoms after returning from overseas or being in contact with someone confirmed as having coronavirus is 8303 and the SPKC COVID-19 advice helpline is 67387661.
The SPKC has information in English about the approved methods of protecting yourself from the virus, symptoms and medical procedures and an interactive map plotting the incidence and distribution of the disease in Latvia.
