COVID-19 Total number of patients increases to 185 and deaths to 6

• Another 195 persons were released after the completion of quarantine  yesterday

By Sandun A. Jayasekera  

With another COVID-19 related death early yesterday morning of an 80-year-old man from Nedimala, Dehiwala at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, the number of Covid-19 deaths rose to six and the number of patients treated increased to 185.  

  The NIID’s Chief Epidemiologist  Dr. Eranga Narangoda told Daily Mirror yesterday that there were no new admissions of Covid-19 patients to the NIID yesterday, but four more patients were discharged after full recovery.   
Countrywide, the total number of suspected cases of COVID-19 were 255, with 132 patients being treated at various hospitals islandwide, and the number of patients who had recovered stood at 42 by yesterday. Two deaths of Sri Lankans were reported from overseas due to Covid-19 infection.   

There were 44 infected patients reported from the District of Colombo yesterday, 31 in Puttalam, 26 in Kalutara, 13 in Gampaha, 7 in Kandy and Jaffna, 3 in Ratnapura, 2 in Kurunegala and 2 in the Matara District. Among those hospitalised, 3 were foreigners.   Another 195 persons were released after the completion of quarantine yesterday by the Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air force, bringing the total number of people quarantined to 2,618.   Meanwhile, the President of the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA)  Dr. Anuruddha Padeniya raised concerns over the lack of a clear-cut policy for medical tests on COVID-19 patients.  He added that policy makers and medical specialists must decide the most comprehensive and technologically advanced medical test that could issue a report in a shorter period of time, with 100% accuracy.