After 3-Week Decline, Covid-19 Deaths Rise Again in São Paulo State

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – After three consecutive weeks of decreasing Covid-19 deaths, the state of São Paulo has once again shown an increase in the number of fatalities from the disease. According to the government, the increase was driven by municipalities in the state’s interior.

Last week, which corresponds to the 29th Epidemiological Week, the total number of deaths in the state increased 14 percent compared to the preceding week. There were 1,945 deaths compared to 1,706 in the 28th week. The total is a record since the start of the pandemic.

In the three preceding weeks, the number of deaths had been dropping in São Paulo. In the 25th Epidemiological Week, there were 1,913 victims; 1,769 in the 26th, 1,733 in the 27th, and 1,706 in the 28th.

Epidemiological weeks are established by an international convention for the control and calculation of data on an epidemic or pandemic. They are always counted from Sundays to Saturdays. Brazil is currently in the 30th week which started on July 19th.

The executive coordinator of the Coronavirus Contingency Center in São Paulo, João Gabbardo, said that the 14 percent increase is within expectations and is still considered stable.

“We saw a reduction in the total number of deaths three weeks ago, but that doesn’t change what we expected from the start of the plan,” Gabbardo said. “Up to 15 percent [of increase] is considered stable”.

Still according to him, one of the causes behind the rise is the increase in the number of cases within the state.

“Last week, the increase in the interior was about 24 percent, but these are numbers that, overall, keep the state in a stable situation, within our forecast. In the capital, the increase was 2.6 percent and in the metropolitan region, it was seven percent,” he said.

According to the Health Secretariat, the state recorded a total of 416,434 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 19,788 deaths.

For the first time, the number of cases in the interior is the same as in the capital, with approximately 166,000 confirmed infections in each region. In relation to deaths, the interior region records 5,612 and Greater São Paulo, 5,318.

Source: Exame