Brazil Outstrips the United States in Number of Daily Deaths by Covid-19

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil passed the United States in terms of daily deaths from the novel coronavirus. The Brazilian Ministry of Health confirmed 807 new deaths on Monday, May 25th, the day the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) included 620 deaths in its official report. According to official data, this was the first time Brazil had more daily death notifications than the United States.

According to the Johns Hopkins University report, the daily death rate in the US was 532 on Monday. The difference between sources is the multiplicity of databases used by Johns Hopkins, while the CDC, the US federal government body, relies on data from state and city health departments.

However, daily death balances are often influenced by reporting issues. Recorded numbers in Brazil fall on weekends and holidays, for one, because of standby regimes at health centers and laboratories, which slows down reporting. The shortage of tests also leads to deaths being included in the balance only weeks later, given the lack of confirmed diagnosis.

The US recorded 1.6 million cases by Monday, May 25th, with 97,600 thousand deaths, according to the CDC. Brazilian data show 374,800 cases, with 23,400. But, while the numbers are beginning to drop there, here in Brazil they are still expected to increase.

The daily death figures are exceeded at a time when South America is considered a new epicenter of the pandemic. This was confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO) last week, as it alerted to the dire situation of states such as Amazonas, where the rate of infection is 652.4 per 100,000 inhabitants.

On Monday, the White House announced travel restrictions on non-US citizens coming from Brazil to the United States, after the country became one of the major hotspots of the coronavirus crisis in the world. The measure became effective at 11:59 PM on Tuesday, May 26th, according to a presidential proclamation. Pressure had been mounting on President Donald Trump given the worsening situation in Brazil.

Source: Estadão Conteúdo