Vietnam has confirmed 9,849 new coronavirus infections in 56 cities and provinces across the country during the past 24 hours, mostly in the south, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in its coronavirus update on November 17.
Labelling samples for COVID-19 testing.
Official data from the MoH showed an additional 67 people have died and 3,873 more patients have recovered from the disease.
Of the newly-detected infections, 4,956 cases were diagnosed in the community through random testing or test screening.
Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai and Binh Duong recorded the highest number of new infections at 1,337, 664, and 601, respectively.
Other southern localities registering between 200 – 500 new cases each include An Giang, Tien Giang, Binh Thuan, Dong Thap, Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Kien Giang, Tay Ninh, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Vinh Long and Ca Mau.
Hanoi capital remains the largest coronavirus hotspot in the north with 239 new cases, followed by Ha Giang 134, Bac Ninh 107, Hai Duong 81, Bac Giang 79, Quang Ninh 79, and Thai Binh 60.
As of 06pm on November 17 Vietnam has documented 1,050,185 COVID-19 cases since the start of the first outbreak in January 2020, ranking 38th out of 223 countries and territories worldwide.
Of the total, 872,053 patients have been discharged from hospital after making a full recovery from the disease.
As many as 23,337 patients have died of the virus, making up 2.2% of the total number of infections.
More than 102 million vaccine doses have been administered nationwide, with 36.8 million people getting their second shot.