NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The country’s COVID-19 positivity rate stood at 22 percent on Monday.
This comes after Minister of Health Renward Wells stated the rate has been at 12 percent over the last two weeks.
In a video, Wells said over the last two weeks the positivity rate dropped from 31 percent to 12 percent – which he said was evidence the government was mitigating the spread of the virus.
According to the Ministry of Health, 140 tests were completed on Monday.
Of those, 31 people tested positive for the virus.
This reflects a 22.1 percent positivity rate.
“A higher percentage suggests a higher transmission of the virus, hence a lower percentage suggests that the rate of transmission has been reduced by nearly one third,” Wells said.
“The WHO recommends that the positivity rate remains below five percent.
“All indicators being monitored by the Ministry of Health point to success in mitigating the spread of COVID-19.”
A total of 1,032 new cases were recorded between October 18-31.
During that period, 8,966 tests were performed, resulting in an average positivity rate of 11.5 percent for the period.
Eyewitness News reported on Monday that while new COVID-19 cases had halved in the last two weeks, testing was down 71 percent.
When contacted yesterday about the decline in testing, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Delon Brennen said: “Note that if less people are exposed, less people will have symptoms and less people will present for testing.”
Wells also attributed the decline in cases to the efforts of the government, its agencies, the healthcare sector, and the adherence of health protocols by the public.
He said the drop in new cases was “by no means a result of a decrease in the number of tests performed”.
“The national testing protocols has not changed,” he said.
“Our experience has been that predominantly those who are symptomatic present for testing.
“Contacts of positive cases are tested only if they become symptomatic.”
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