As the number of cases of the new COVID-19 variant JN.1 is surging, followed by three deaths, Karnataka is going to implement a mandatory seven-day home isolation for COVID-19 patients, and all the primary contacts of these people are to be tested.

The decision was taken by a cabinet sub-committee on COVID-19, which is chaired by Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, to curb the rising infections, and the government is set to issue the guidelines. There were 74 new cases of infections reported in Karnataka on Tuesday, of which 57 were from Bengaluru.

The employees of government and private organizations who are under home isolation will receive seven days of leave. The doctors and medical staff from UPHCs and Namma clinics will visit the general ward and home-isolated admissions regularly. Through tele-ICU, those patients who are in ICUs are monitored from state headquarters. And every day, starting Tuesday, the state government intends to conduct 5,000 COVID examinations.

The central government will provide 30,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines to Karnataka, and the vaccines will be disseminated to taluk and district hospitals. The state government also decided to administer a precautionary dose to old people and people with comorbidities. The flu vaccine is also administered to healthcare workers.

Presently, there are no constraints on New Year celebrations or interstate travel. Yet, it is instructed to wear masks in public places, and senior citizens and people with comorbidities are mandated to wear masks. Parents are advised not to send their children to school if they are suffering from symptoms such as fever, cold, or cough until the symptoms subside.

The sub-committee also decided that all the district hospitals and government medical colleges in the state create separate COVID-19 wards, and the samples will be sent to entrusted labs for genome sequencing. The COVID-19 Technical Advisory Committee recommended that CT scans be used only for confirmed cases of COVID and not for suspected cases.

(Input from various media sources) 

(Rehash/Lavanya Beeraboina)