Its now easier to pass the virus from one person to another - Dr. Fong

The Permanent Secretary for Health, Dr. James Fong has stressed that its easier to pass the virus from one person to another and we just have to be careful.

While responding to questions on the more infectious variant, Dr. Fong says before they had said the contact duration had to be 15 minutes and now the duration may have to be shorter between people for the virus to catch someone or sharing just one puff of the cigarette may help to pass the virus.

He says while it has become easier to pass the virus from one person to another, the modes of transportation are the same and therefore mitigation measures are the same.

Dr. Fong says we just need to be careful and our mask wearing, hand sanitizing and social distancing protocols have to be applied more stringently.

He also confirms that Fiji has 80 ventilators.

40 ventilators are in use while 40 are in reserve.