HAVANA, March 6 (Xinhua) -- The number of daily coronavirus cases and deaths in Cuba has continued to fall in the past week as more than half of the country's population has received an additional COVID-19 vaccine dose.
It comes as the Caribbean nation on Sunday registered 482 coronavirus cases and one more related death, taking the national counts to 1,072,956 and 8,500, respectively, according to the health ministry.
At present, there are 2,365 active cases of COVID-19 in Cuba, with 23 in intensive care units.
So far, 9.8 million of Cuba's 11.2 million residents have been vaccinated with domestic COVID-19 vaccines as some 6 million people have received a booster dose, the ministry said.
The island country has already administered more than 35 million doses of Soberana 02, Abdala, and Soberana Plus COVID-19 vaccines.
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel noted the importance of the COVID-19 booster drive to keep the pandemic at bay in the coming months.
Meanwhile, the number of local COVID-19 cases across the country has continued to drop for the fourth consecutive week.
Francisco Duran, Cuba's top epidemiologist, urged people to take measures to minimize the risk of contagion with the virus among senior citizens, pregnant women, and children.
While most COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted, mask requirements in public areas remain.
In addition, passengers arriving in Cuba need to show PCR results from within 72 hours upon arrival and proof of vaccination against COVID-19. ■
