In a major reversal in guidelines, the CDC, a top U.S. health authority, has recommended that people vaccinated against COVID-19 in high-risk parts of the United States should resume wearing masks indoors.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Rochelle Walensky cited new data that shows rare breakthrough cases involving Delta have an increased risk of onward transmission.
You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here. A list of State Helpline numbers is available as well.
Here are the latest updates:
India adds 43,645 COVID-19 cases, 640 deaths
India logged 43,654 fresh COVID-19 cases taking its tally to 3,14,84,605, while 640 more fatalities pushed the death toll to 4,22,022, according to Union Health Ministry data on Wednesday.
The number of active cases stood at 3,99,436, an increase of 1,336 in a span of 24 hours, and comprises 1.27 per cent of the total infections. The national COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 97.39 per cent, the data updated at 8 am showed.
As many as 17,36,857 COVID-19 tests were conducted on Tuesday, taking the total number of tests conducted so far to 46,09,00,978. - PTI
Current restrictions in Kerala to continue
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday said the current COVID-19 regulations would continue as per the government’s A, B, C and D zonal categorisation.
However, it would consider whether to allow textile shops to open for business as per the pandemic protocol. The administration would limit the number of persons authorised into a shop at a time. Moreover, it would insist that only vaccinated salespersons manage the counters.