Iraq officials warn of health sector ‘collapse’ as COVID-19 infections hit record highs

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iraqi health officials are warning of the devastating effect of the recent upsurge in coronavirus cases, as the country registered record-high daily numbers earlier in the week.

All provinces are threatened with health collapse due to citizen’s noncompliance with preventive measures, Kirkuk Health Director Nabil Hamdi Bushnaq told Rudaw on Thursday.

“We are in control of the situation so far, but I can’t guarantee you that Kirkuk’s health department will not collapse in the upcoming days,” he added.

The health ministry will face difficulties meeting the demand for oxygen and beds for patients, according to Hamdi. “We have average capabilities. The oxygen in storage is starting to decrease, and the medications we buy from local and international markets for this virus are expensive.”

Iraq is seeing a third wave of the virus as the more contagious Delta variant spreads through the country.

Health officials and experts confirm that the Delta variant spreads faster, causing severe infections among young people as well as children, Iraq’s Ministry of Health said in a statement.

Hospitals and health centers have witnessed the overcrowding of patients, as well as an “increase in critical cases, among them young people,” reads the statement noting that the rate of death is growing at a dangerous rate.

Iraq recorded 9,883 new coronavirus cases on Monday, the highest number of cases since the beginning of the pandemic. Health officials blame the rise in cases on people’s noncompliance with preventive measures.

The ministry warned in late June that the country was entering a "more severe and dangerous" wave of the pandemic.

The Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Health is also warning of the severity of the current spike. It recorded 1,985 coronavirus cases a day before Eid al-Adha, its highest daily record since the start of the pandemic.

Iraq officials warn of health sector ‘collapse’ as COVID-19 infections hit record highs

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