St Vincent and the Grenadines on Tuesday reported 17 new Covid-19 cases of which 12 are part of the  cluster of cases related to the Mental Health Rehabilitation Centre (MHRC).

A release from the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) said the 17 new positive cases are from 236 samples received and processed on Monday  March 1, 2021.

Of the 12 new positives related to the MHRC, eight are patients, three, members of staff  and one a contact. There are now 104 Covid-19 positive cases related to the MHRC cluster.

The five other positive persons include three contacts of a known positive not  related to MHRC and two  persons who presented to health care facilities seeking care.

The positivity rate for Monday March 1, 2021 is 7.2 per cent. 

Four persons were cleared bringing the number of total recoveries to 949. Six hundred and eighty-eight (688) cases remain  active and eight persons with COVID-19 have died. One thousand, six hundred  and forty-five (1645) cases of COVID-19 have been reported in St. Vincent and the  Grenadines since March 2020.  

The public is urged to use a mask, sanitize, physically distance and get vaccinated  to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.