By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said yesterday the government currently has no plans to impose COVID-19 testing requirements for travellers coming from China after a surge in cases there.

However, he also noted this could change as officials continue to closely monitor the situation.

In recent weeks, more than a dozen countries, including the US, UK and other European nations, have announced new testing measures for passengers from China as the nation battles an outbreak of COVID-19.

US government officials have cited concerns over a lack of data on infections in China and fears about the possibility of new strains emerging, according to international reports.

 A new Omicron variant, called XBB, has created some cause for concern.

 “Well, as far as we know, we have not gotten any report that the new variant is here,” Dr Darville said before going to a Cabinet meeting yesterday. “I suspect like when the Omicron variant arrived in The Bahamas, the confirmation took a few weeks and few months to determine. But, for us at the Ministry of Health and Wellness, our job is to be ready for any situation. We are operating as if it is in country, even though we may not have a verification at this time.”

 “We are watching what’s going on internationally,” Dr Darville added. “We’re looking at our borders. We’re looking at the United States. We’re looking at what’s happening in China, and our EOC (Emergency Operation Centre) and our technical team is very much in tune with the cases.”

 He added: “One of the things is over the holiday weekend, we had record amount of tourists visiting the country. This is good for our economy and at the Ministry of Health, it is our responsibility to mitigate the risk as it relates to COVID-19 and the economy.”

“I believe that we have done a relatively good job at this particular point and with all of our technical team, we will continue to do what we do at the ministry and to assure the Bahamian people that our job is to notify them anytime there is an incident that we believe it is worth reporting but as it stands right now, we are mindful. We are on alert.”

 Dr Darville reminded that COVID will likely be with us for a long time, adding that while officials are concerned about numbers rising, they also must be mindful that the country’s economy is still rebounding.

 He also explained that if the situation worsens, the government can adopt the health services rules “to put some measures in place”.

 This comes after the Ministry of Health announced new precautionary measures have been implemented in the Intensive Care Unit and Neonatal Intensive Care unit following an increase in cases due to virus exposure at the facility.

 The hospital’s COVID-19 protocols have been reinstated to only allow for two visitors per patient for a total of 15 minutes per visit.

 Dr Darville said the move is a part of the ministry’s strategy to mitigate the effects of COVID-19.

 “As far as the hospital is concerned, as of yesterday (Monday), we have 18 cases of COVID-19 in hospital and one case in the ICU,” he added. “We made it very clear in our rules, our COVID rules that we must protect our tertiary institutions, particularly our clinics, and the Princess Margaret Hospital and the Rand Memorial Hospital.”

 “You might have noticed that as a result of the case in the ICU, the public hospital authority had to tighten our grips to limit the amount of visitors and the time spent with visitors at the ICU in the hospitals.”

 “This is all a part of our strategy to try to mitigate the effects of COVID-19. One of the things I’d like to say is that COVID-19 never really went away.” 

 He added: “At the hospitals, we have been dealing with situations associated with COVID and I’m pleased to report that we are able to handle the situation as it is today.”