For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Thabi Madiba.

Making headlines: Vaccine registration for people 50 and over opens July 1; Advisory committee recommends a hybrid of Level 3 and 4 for Gauteng; And, Western Cape health officials says people must avoid small gatherings to flatten the curve

Vaccine registration for people 50 and over opens July 1

Acting Health Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane announced today that South Africans aged between 50 and 59 years can register for the Covid-19 vaccine from July 1, with vaccinations for this age group scheduled to begin July 15.

South Africa is battling a third wave of the pandemic, with Gauteng driving the surge in infections. The province recorded 9 521 new cases in 24 hours, accounting for 59% of the cases nationally.

Kubayi-Ngubane said part of government’s surge response is accelerating the vaccine rollout.

Pfizer has delivered almost 4.5-million vaccine doses, with a further 2.1-million expected in July. 1.2-million doses of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine arrived in the country yesterday and will need to be used by August 11.

Advisory committee recommends a hybrid of Level 3 and 4 for Gauteng

The Gauteng premier's advisory committee on Covid-19 recommends the province be placed under a hybrid of Level 3 and 4 lockdown.

Gauteng is currently the epicentre of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the province currently experiencing a 37% positivity rate in all tests.

Dr Mary Kawonga, the head of the committee said moving the province back to Level 5 would be too severe and and will have a disastrous impact on people.

Kawonga added that Gauteng need tighter restrictions … but there must be balance between health and economic considerations.

And, Western Cape health officials says people must avoid small gatherings to flatten the curve

Small gatherings are driving the increase in Covid-19 cases in the Western Cape, according to health officials.

Even though adjusted Level 3 lockdown regulations prohibit gatherings of more than 50 people indoors, the smaller functions are driving cluster outbreak.

Dr Keith Cloete said the department still anticipated that the third wave in the Western Cape would be less severe than the second wave, but this required a change in behaviour.

He said the Western Cape recorded a 51% increase in cases over the last week, with more than 1 000 new cases registered every day.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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