JEDDAH: Saudi travelers have been urged to check coronavirus disease (COVID-19) regulations at international destinations ahead of their flights, as quarantine measures may differ from one destination to the next.
Assistant Deputy Minister for Preventive Medicine Dr. Abdullah Asiri on Saturday urged Saudis intending to travel abroad after the May 17 lifting of the flight ban to be fully immunized before their flights, but warned that it might not spare them from spending time in quarantine isolation upon arrival, adding that each country’s regulations differ from one another and “immunized individuals might not be exempt.”
The Saudi Ministry of Health (MoH), though, has said no quarantine is required for immunized individuals in the Kingdom if they have come into contact with a person infected with COVID-19.
A number of queries have been made about quarantine regulations after receiving a second jabs, but the MoH confirmed that 14 days after receiving the second dose, fully immunized individuals do not have to quarantine after contact with a confirmed case, but must continue with general precautions such as wearing a mask and social distancing.
The MoH added that the COVID-19 vaccine works to stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies, decreasing the risk of severe symptoms, and can also reduce transmission to others.
On Saturday, a total of 1,048 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded in the Kingdom, meaning 418,411 people in Saudi Arabia have now contracted the disease.
INNUMBERS
418,411 Total cases
401,544 Recoveries
6,968 Deaths
The highest recorded number of infections were in Riyadh at 379, Makkah reporting 277 cases and the Eastern Province 141, while the lowest number of infections came in the Northern Borders with 14, Baha with nine cases and Jouf with eight.
The number of active cases is still dangerously close to the 10,000 case mark. With Saturday’s numbers, there are currently 9,899 active cases, 1,333 of them critical — a decline by just 2 patients in the past 24 hours.
An additional 964 new recoveries were announced, taking the total number of recoveries to 401,544, while 11 new deaths were reported, raising the death toll to 6,968.
The Kingdom’s current recovery rate is holding steady at 95.9 percent.
Saudi Arabia has administered more than 9.4 million COVID-19 vaccines so far at a daily rate of 194,978. That equates to 27 percent of the Kingdom’s residents receiving at least one dose.
There were 65,454 PCR tests carried out in the past 24 hours, raising the total number conducted in the Kingdom to more than 16.96 million.
