Vietnam Covid-19 epicentre - Ho Chi Minh City - may have 40% more unrecorded cases - report

n alley is blocked with trash can and a Vietnamese flags in Vung Tau, Vietnam, on Sept. 13, 2021. In Vung Tau, just outside Ho Chi Minh city, streets are sealed and checkpoints are set up to control the movement of people. Barbed wire, door panels, steel sheets, chairs and tables are among materials being used to fence up alleys and isolate neighborhoods.- AP

HANOI, Sept 27 (Reuters): Authorities in Vietnam's biggest city are urging the government to recognise positive rapid tests for Covid-19 to present a clearer picture of its outbreak, state media reported on Monday, a move that could increase the city's case total by 40%.

Ho Chi Minh City, home to about 9 million people, has borne the brunt of Vietnam's coronavirus crisis, accounting for 80% of its more than 18,500 COVID-19 deaths and half of its 756,000 cases.