These figures increase total cases of the new coronavirus to 182,977 and accumulated deaths to 3,264, according to the epidemiological report.

To date, 8,286 tests were applied, for a positivity percentage of 21.8%. The total number of tests carried out since last March is 1,007,599.

The patients recovered from the disease are 156,870 and active cases total 22,843.

In home isolation there are 21,584 people, of which 20,882 are at home and 666 in hospital hotels.

There are 1,295 hospitalized patients, of which 1,125 are in the ward and 170 are in the intensive care unit.

The number of centers to perform tests should be increased

On the other hand, the Minsa reported that given the increase in requests for swab tests, it is working to increase the number of centers in various parts of the country.

Esmeralda Martínez, National Coordinator of Hisopados Centers, said that in the “autoexpress” that works in the José Antonio Remón Cantera School, in Paitilla, San Francisco, the number of tests that were applied daily has been exceeded.

He stated that originally 200 swabs were applied a day, but in less than a week the figure increased to 300 daily and this Wednesday, December 9, it increased to 479 swabs.

He explained that at the beginning of its operation, it was attended by appointments, but due to spontaneous demand (people who present themselves with or without symptoms), the figures rose.

Martínez pointed out that this forces them to limit the hours that were 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., since it is necessary to close earlier to be able to process the hundreds of samples.

Given the demand, it is necessary to establish this type of center in North Panama, the Roberto Durán Coliseum in Juan Díaz and reinforce the one in San Miguelito, located in the Great Station.

He said that in the Panama metro region, talks are being held with at least three shopping centers to establish this type of center. In addition, a center will soon open in Coclé and another in Panama Oeste, which will be in a shopping center behind the Xtra supermarket in Arraiján.

Currently, the personnel who would be in charge of taking the samples are being trained to establish the new centers.

NOTE:

Some observers have argued that the Minsa reported case fatality rate (number of COVID linked deaths / number of known cases) in reality should be much lower, as the number of reported cases does not necessarily reflect the truth, as the testing does not cover the whole population, and many cases go undetected. At the same time, the government can't report what they don't know, but readers should note that the numbers may tell a different story from the reality.

Also, how a "COVID death" is counted is also unclear, as many of the deaths correspond to underlying previous conditions, such as cancer, blood diseases, other age related diseases etc., and are reported as COVID deaths since the patient also had the coronavirus. On the other hand, many viruses are known to lower the patient's immunity and expose them to other diseases. As an example most HIV/AIDS patients don't die from the virus itself, but from other derived diseases such as pneumonia or regular flu.

There have also been reports on the inaccuracy of the PCR test, which would highly compromise any figures mentioned above.

In lack of better information sources, PanaTimes continues to report the government (Minsa) announced figures. Readers are adviced to use their own judgement.