Another 164 people in Malta have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of active coronavirus cases in the country to 2,398 as of Friday.

Health authorities carried out 2,873 swab tests over the past 24 hours, meaning there was a positivity rate of 5.71 per cent. 

Two further people died - an 84-year-old man died at Karin Grech Hospital and an 82-year-old woman died at Mater Dei Hospital - taking the total virus death toll to 288.

Meanwhile, 165 virus patients recovered overnight.

Healthcare workers administered a total of 46,344 vaccine doses by Thursday. That number includes 13,820 second doses.

Malta updated its amber list of countries on Thursday, adding more airports. The UK remains in the red zone, with travel to and from the country prohibited.

The health authorities also said they will continue to give AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine to people aged under 55, despite the World Health Organisation backing its use for the elderly.

Superintendent of Health Charmaine Gauci is giving details about recent cases in her weekly news conference.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.