Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, has announced an adjustment in the curfew hours, as well as other coronavirus (COVID-19) containment measures, as the country sees a spike in cases of the virus. Effective Tuesday (July 27), the new curfew hours will be from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. on weekdays. On Sundays and the upcoming public holidays –...

Regional Vector Control Officer for the Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA), Ryan Morris, says Community Health Aides (CHAs) have been playing a pivotal role in the health region’s vector-control efforts. Some 1,300 CHAs were recruited in 2020 as part of a strategic undertaking by the Ministry of Health and Wellness to prepare the population to live with the coronavirus (COVID-19)....

  NEW CASES 24 HRS OVERALL   NOTES Confirmed Cases 105 52,089 SEX CLASSIFICATION Females 53 29,161 Males 52 22,925 Under Investigation 0 3 AGE RANGE 1 day to 79 years 1 day to 108 years       PARISH CLASSIFICATION OF NEW CASES       Clarendon 8 2,774 Hanover 10 1,484 Kingston & St. Andrew 18 14,319 Manchester...

Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, says Jamaica’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry has recorded a 15 per cent increase in employment, despite the economic fallout resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  Speaking during the opening of the IBEX BPO facility at the G-Tech Park in Portmore, St. Catherine on Friday (July 23), Mr. Holness said approximately 44,000 persons were employed across the sector as at June 2021, relative to 38,400 for the corresponding period last year.     ...

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, is urging persons who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus (COVID-19) to maintain strict adherence to the stipulated protocols and safeguards.  He says while inoculation will help in reducing the possibility of serious illness, it does not guarantee that individuals won’t contract the disease.     “There are [approximately] 300,000 Jamaicans who have had at least one [COVID-19 vaccine] dose. [But] the fact that you are [among that group] does not mean that...

The Ministry of Health and Wellness is expressing concern that the n-coronavirus (COVID-19) positivity rate in Jamaica has been increasing over recent weeks. The positivity rate refers to the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases from samples tested. Portfolio Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, said that recently there has been an uptick in the daily positivity rate, noting that up...

United States (US) Congresswoman, Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, says that the Biden Administration is working through logistical and legal matters to begin distributing vaccines to Jamaica and other CARICOM countries.  Congresswoman Jackson Lee, who was addressing a virtual town hall hosted by Jamaica’s Ambassador to the US, Audrey Marks, on Thursday (July 22), said that the discussions are being handled with urgency to have “those vaccines flown to Jamaica”.   She noted that half a million doses of vaccines have been...