THE CNMI Covid-19 Task Force and the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. on Friday reported the 21st Covid-19-related death in the islands since March 2020.
The average age of decedents from the viral infection was 67 years old, compared to the average age of 30 years old for general individuals confirmed positive for Covid-19.
All of the fatalities had underlying medical conditions; 14 were unvaccinated or had not received their second dose.
Most of the vaccinated decedents were vaccinated early on and were not up-to-date with their vaccinations.
Only one of the decedents had received a booster dose.
“Most of these individuals were diagnosed too late to receive monoclonal antibodies,” CHCC Chief Executive Officer Esther L. Muna said. “We’re asking individuals to please seek care or test early if you’re experiencing Covid-19 symptoms, as you may be eligible for monoclonal antibodies or other new drugs that are given soon after infection.”
Muna said the unvaccinated were 14 times more likely to die from Covid-19 than the vaccinated.
She also announced on Friday that eight cases on Tinian and six on Rota tested positive for Covid-19.
She said all positive cases have been isolated and are actively monitored. 53 close contacts were identified on Tinian and 40 on Rota, all of whom tested negative for Covid-19.
“While we have seen a major decrease in cases since the beginning of this wave of infections, the total number of cases and hospitalizations still remains too high,” Muna said.
The CNMI has been seeing about 30 to 40 cases a month, she added.
“We have cases in Rota. We still need to protect ourselves and our community from Covid-19.”
Muna said although the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has not been detected in the CNMI, the community must be prepared for a new wave of positive cases.
“The continuing cases, hospitalizations, and death in our community is an opportunity to remind everyone that the pandemic is not over,” she said.
Stephanie Kern-Allely, Pacific Islands Health Officers Association regional communicable disease epidemiologist, said some of the positive cases on Tinian and Rota have recent travel history to jurisdictions with high rates of positive Covid-19 cases, such as Guam and the U.S. mainland.
Valentino Hotel on Rota and Fleming Hotel on Tinian have been designated as quarantine sites.
If you have concerns regarding a possible exposure to a positive case, call the contact tracers at (670) 285-1942, 286-1710, or 286-1711.
If you are experiencing symptoms of Covid-19, such as fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, or new loss of taste or smell, see your provider or call the CHCC Tele-Triage hotline at (670) 233-2067.
