|
| 
Published Monday, February 8, 2021
Social Security buys disposable
gowns valued at $14 million-plus
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Social Security announced the purchase of 8 million unisex disposable protective gowns valued at $14,360,000 from the company from Quality Store SA.
"The price analysis, which was compared technically and regulatory with the other eligible offers, was found reasonable," Social Security said in its statement.
The purchase of these supplies became an extraordinary acquisition, due to the health emergency caused by covid-19. The supply will be distributed among health workers who are at the front lines in the fight against the virus.
The number of disposable gowns used per month by health workers is between 220,000 to 550,000 units, according to Social Security.
Health authorities must maintain high inventories of medical supplies to protect health workers, due to the constant increase in covid-19 infections in the country.
On Friday, the Ministry of Health shared the most updated statistics about the impacts of the virus in the country:
• 446 new covid-19 cases are reported, bringing the total to 37,585 current active cases.
• 24,280 foreign-born people have been infected as part of the 196,438 cases since March, approximately 12.3% of the total cases. Of these, authorities confirmed the death of 32 foreign-born patients. But since October, there is no updated information about foreign-born deaths due to covid-19.
• 364 patients are being treated in public hospitals, where 164 patients are in ICU’s in delicate health conditions. Their ages range from 1 to 94-years-old. And 200 patients are in recovery rooms. Many of the remaining infected patients are quarantined in their homes.
• 156,181 patients have fully recovered, a 79.4% recovery rate of the total cases since March.
• 607,403 covid-19 tests have been conducted in Costa Rica since March, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering of Johns Hopkins University in the U.S.
• 2,672 deaths are listed as covid-19 related, approximately 1.4% death rate. Of these 1,005 are women and 1,667 men. The ages range from a 2-year-old to a 101-year-old.
Readers can see the current number of infected people in each district at the National Distance Education University on its Covid-19 Map.
According to Johns Hopkins University, the pandemic has killed more than 2.3 million people worldwide.
-------------------
Have you heard of health workers lacking protection supplies in your community? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com
|
