Laos has completely locked down four central districts in its capital city of Vientiane in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19, while Malaysia has planned to offer booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines to frontline forces and the elderly to increase their immunity.

COVID-19 testing in Vientiane, Laos. (Photo: VNA)

The Lao Ministry of Health on September 19 confirmed 371 new infections in the past 24 hours, including 303 found in the community. The number of cases in Vientiane accounted for the lion’s share of the daily caseload, at 225.

Travel, except for those with permissions, is banned in the capital’s locked-down areas. Vientiane is also intensifying its pandemic prevention measures, including 14-day quarantine for people from other COVID-19-hit localities and prohibition of traveling to localities with high level of pandemic situation.

Laos has so far logged 19,185 cases, including 16 deaths.

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s administration of the booster shots to high-risk groups such as frontliners, the immunocompromised and the elderly with comorbidities will begin once the COVID-19 mass immunisation coverage has covered 80 percent of the adult population nationwide, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said.

According to official statistics, as of September 18, 78.2 percent of Malaysian adults completed their vaccinations.  

Also on September 18, 15,549 new cases brought the country’s tally to 2,082,876 ca. A total of 324 new fatalities were recorded, raising the country's death toll to 23,067.

Source: VNA