Jamaica reports first day with no new COVID-19 cases

Jamaican health authorities have reported that the country had recorded no new positive cases of COVID-19 – the first time since early March when the first case was reported.

At the same time, the country’s Ministry of Health and Wellness said the number of people who have recovered from the virus rose to 118, up from 113 in the 24 hours before last night’s report. “The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Jamaica remains at 509,” the ministry said in a news release.

It also said that, in addition to the 224 cases that are employees of the workplace cluster in St. Catherine parish, there are:

• 41 imported cases;
• 193 cases that are contacts of confirmed cases, including 96 that are contacts of employees in the workplace cluster in the St Catherine parish;
• 24 that are local transmission cases not epidemiologically linked; and
• 27 that are under investigation.

The ministry also said that 305 or 60 percent of the confirmed cases are female and 204 or 40 percent are male ranging in age from 2 months to 87 years.

“Of the 509 confirmed COVID-19 cases to date, the 118 who have recovered represent a 23.2 percent recovery rate compared to the nine or 1.8 percent who have died,” the ministry said.

The ministry also said that 7,780 samples have been tested on the island, reporting 509 positives, 7,213 negatives, and 58 pending.

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