CAPE TOWN, July 17 (Xinhua) -- South Africa on Friday reduced COVID-19 quarantine days from 14 to 10 with immediate effect despite surging COVID-19 cases in the country.
The decision was announced by Health Minister Zweli Mkhize who gave a virtual briefing on the country's response to the pandemic.
Mkhize said it usually takes six to eight days for people infected with COVID-19 to show symptoms, adding his department is considering shortening the quarantine period to eight days.
As of Friday, South Africa's cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases jumped to 337,594, up by 13,373 from Thursday, according to Mkhize.
Meanwhile, the country reported 135 more COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 4,804, said Mkhize. Enditem
