Residents must travel by taxi if they need to go to hospitals for check-ups or follow-ups
Residents in Ho Chi Minh City are allowed to go to hospitals for health check-ups and follow-up appointments during the ongoing shelter-in-place mandate, which lasts from August 23 to September 6.
However, they are required to travel by taxi, according to Tang Chi Thuong, deputy director of the municipal Department of Health.
The city’s Department of Transport has permitted 500 taxis, including 200 cabs from Mai Linh and 300 others from Vinasun, to transport local residents to hospitals for their check-ups.
People who need to go to vaccination sites can also use this transport service.
Residents can book a ride via the hotlines of Mai Linh (1055) and Vinasun (02838 27 27 27).
Competent authorities have also established mobile medical stations in each ward, commune, and town to monitor and provide emergency treatment for COVID-19 patients, said Nguyen Hoai Nam, another deputy director of the municipal health department.
These stations are also in charge of providing medical service for people with other health conditions, as well as carrying out COVID-19 testing and vaccination, Nam continued.
The health official added that COVID-19 inoculation is conducted normally during the shelter-in-place order.
Current vaccination units have been divided into smaller teams, who will be sent to each neighborhood to provide the shots to local residents.
The approach is aimed at reducing the number of people on local streets during this period.
The Ho Chi Minh City steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control recently ordered the expedition of inoculations to meet the target.
The municipal People’s Committee has set a goal to provide the first doses to 70 percent of the city’s adult population and fully vaccinate 15 percent of these people.
Ho Chi Minh City is currently the hardest-hit locality, with over 184,000 local infections recorded since the fourth wave hit the country on April 27.
Authorities have asked people to stay where they are from August 23 to September 6, as part of drastic measures to push back the serious pandemic.
