The Ministry of Health (Minsa) reported that in addition, for today 822 new coronavirus infections are reported, with which the total number of cases in the country rises to 132,867.

The epidemiological report details that to date 109,369 recovered people and 20,810 cases that remain active are reported, of which 19,655 are in hospital hotels and 509 remain in isolation at home.

Regarding hospitalizations, a total of 509 patients currently remain in the ward, while 111 are in intensive care units.

The Minsa points out that it adds that in the last hours 8,103 new tests have been carried out to detect COVID-19 and the positivity rate is 10.1%.

Awareness day at the Albrook Transport Terminal

Minsa developed this Friday an awareness day at the Albrook Transportation Terminal, with the aim of reminding the population that travels to the interior of the country, the importance of maintaining and complying with biosecurity measures to avoid becoming a propagator of COVID-19.

In that sense, the Minister of Health, Luis Sucre, called on citizens to maintain the family bubble made up of people who reside in the same residence, avoid greetings with kisses and hugs, maintain the use of the mask and comply with the physical distance that is a minimum of two meters away.

Bags were distributed to travelers, which include masks, acrylic screens, soap or alcoholic gel, as well as printed material that includes the main biosafety regulations and health protocols, dictated by the Minsa. What is sought with these actions is to ensure that the indicators of the COVID-19 pandemic maintain a favorable trend and that it is not necessary to have to go backwards as in other countries, detailed the Minsa.

NOTE:

Some critics have argued that the Minsa reported case fatality rate (number of COVID linked deaths / number of known cases) in reality could 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 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.

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