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This Wednesday Portugal registered three more deaths and 646 cases of contagion by the new coronavirus, which corresponds to an increase of 1.1%. For more than four months, such a high number of new cases have not been registered in Portugal, this being the largest daily increase since April 20, the day on which 657 more infections were registered. In addition, this is the 16th worst day in terms of new cases since the start of the pandemic, only surpassed by the numbers of March 27, 28, 29 and 31, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, April 10, 16, 18 and 20.
In total, there are now 1,849 deaths and 61,541 confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic.
Of the 646 new cases, 290 (45%) were registered in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo and 276 (43%) in the northern region. Two of the three deaths registered in the last 24 hours have been identified in the capital region, one in the North. The data appear in the epidemiological bulletin for this Wednesday released by the General Directorate of Health (DGS).
138 people recovered during the previous day, with a total of 43,284 recovered. There are currently 16,408 active cases, 505 more than Tuesday, after subtracting the number of recovered people and deaths from the total number of infections.
391 people are hospitalized (three less than on Tuesday), 52 of whom are in intensive care units (two more than the day before).
The three fatalities identified in the last 24 hours were male, one between 70 and 79 years old and two over 80 years old, this being the age group most affected in terms of deaths.
The area of the country most affected by the pandemic continues to be the Lisbon region and the Tagus Valley, which registers 31,563 accumulated cases of contagion. North follows, with 22,325 cases; the Center, with 5,044 cases (40 more than the day before); the Algarve, with 1,186 cases (plus 15); and Alentejo with 1021 cases (23 more in the last 24 hours). The Azores archipelago has a total of 228 contagion cases (one more than the previous day) and Madeira has 174 cases (one more than on Tuesday).
The North is the region with the highest number of deaths from covid-19, with a total of 852 since the start of the pandemic. Lisbon and Vale do Tejo registered 689 deaths as of Wednesday, followed by the Center, with 254 deaths, Alentejo, with 22 deaths, and the Algarve, with 17 deaths from covid-19.
Only 12% of new cases are people older than 70 years
The general director of Health, Graça Freitas, said: during the DGS press conference, That the high number of new cases this Wednesday (646) has a positive side: only 12% of the new cases are of people over 70 years old. According to Graça Freitas, this is “a positive indicator in relation to the potential severity of the cases and that highlights this social mobility that is normal for re-entry after having had a vacation.”
Graça Freitas also reported that, to date, there are 23 households with active outbreaks, a figure that means, according to the Director General of Health, that “the measures that are being taken are taking effect.”
The Undersecretary of State and Health, Jamila Madeira, He admitted that the Government “already expected that number to increase” due to the increase in activity contacts in the post-vacation period, which justifies the decision to implement a contingency period for the entire country.
20 million more to buy protective equipment
Jamila Madeira announced that the tender for the massive purchase of personal protective equipment has already been launched, with an investment of close to 20 million euros.
“With the beginning of the academic year, we enter a new phase of pandemic management. We are also working so that the opening of schools and the return of the country to the post-holiday rhythm have the least possible impact. Even so, we believe that the figures will change and we continue to strengthen the National Health Service and social structures day by day so that they respond in the best possible way ”, said Jamila Madeira.
The Undersecretary of State and Health said the money will be spent on various protective materials for health professionals. “For the Government, the safety of health professionals continues to be a determining factor in the strategy to combat the pandemic that we have adopted and, therefore, in the permanent uncertainty of the dimension that the pandemic may reach, we opted for the certainty of guaranteeing health professionals all conditions so that they can work in absolute safety. The number of professionals infected with SARS-CoV-2 is around 7.5%, a figure well below the world average, estimated by the WHO at around 10%, ”he said.
According to the data presented by Jamila Madeira, there are 4,551 cases of contagion among health professionals (1,342 nurses, 1306 operational assistants, 584 doctors, 166 technical assistants, 146 diagnostic and therapeutic technicians). Of these, 3,892 have already recovered from the disease.
The Undersecretary of State and Health also said that “during the entire period of the pandemic, almost four thousand professionals were hired,” almost half of the 8,400 professionals that the Government plans to hire during the next two years.
The AstraZeneca tests proceed normally. Studies have been suspended
The president of Infarmed, Rui Santos Ivo, assured this Tuesday at a press conference that the suspension of clinical trials of phase 3 of the vaccine against covid-19, by AstraZeneca, is a “normal situation” in the scientific process.
Rui Santos Ivo explained that the trials were suspended, but not the vaccine. “We are facing a normal operating situation of the system and it is important to realize that the system is working well, so that we can have the answers we need to proceed with the investigation,” he said.
According to the president of Infarmed, an assessment by an AstraZeneca panel of experts is underway to understand what prompted the adverse reaction. – evaluation that “is part of the good practices of the clinical research that is planned” – and it is not yet known what caused this reaction.
The president of Infarmed also assured that a vaccine will not be approved by the European Medicines Agency or Infarmed without meeting “the three criteria that we always check: quality, safety and efficacy” and reported that “advanced procedures are being developed to create conditions so that citizens have access to the vaccine when it is available ”.
