NUR-SULTAN / ex ASTANA (Xinhua) — Kazakh Health Minister Yelzhan Birtanov on Sunday confirmed that he tested positive for COVID-19 virus and was admitted to an infectious diseases hospital in capital Nur-Sultan (ex Astana).

Yelzhan Birtanov

(Credit: (Photo by Kalizhan Ospanov / Xinhua)

Birtanov wrote in his Facebook page:

My last coronavirus test showed a positive result. Unfortunately, this is not an asymptomatic form, so I was hospitalized in an infectious diseases hospital.

The minister noted that despite the strict sanitary measures, there are always risks of infection, especially for those who cannot work remotely:

In recent days, there has been an increasing number of infection cases among entrepreneurs, doctors, government employees and media workers in different regions.

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As of Sunday, Kazakhstan has reported 14,496 confirmed cases, 73 deaths and 4,402 asymptomatic cases.