Head of the Parliamentary Health Committee Assem Araji warned of a general lockdown if the number of cases continues to increase. (Credit: Emilie Madi/Reuters)
BEIRUT – Head of the Parliamentary Health Committee Assem Araji told radio station VDL (93.3) that the occupancy rate of COVID-19 beds has reached 80 percent at hospitals across Lebanon, and 90 percent in some areas like Akkar and Nabatieh. He warned of a general lockdown if the number of cases continues to increase.
Here’s what we know:
• Araji fears an expected increase in cases of COVID-19’s Omicron variant that is estimated to be about five to six times more contagious than the Delta variant.
• He stressed the importance of getting a third booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to increase immunity and resistance against all mutations.
• “The composition of the American Johnson & Johnson vaccine is similar to the composition of the AstraZeneca vaccine, thus among 100,000 people there is a person at risk of clotting,” Araji said. The United States donated 336,000 doses of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines to Lebanon on Sunday.