The Ministry of Health (SSa) reported this Wednesday, June 10, that the accumulated COVID-19 infections are 129,184, the number the government is admitting in their daily news conference, that is 4,883 new cases today, setting a new record. Furthermore, since the beginning of the epidemic, Mexico has suffered at least 15,357 fatalities, adding 708 new deaths today.
The State of Jalisco reported 5,244 total cases of COVID-19, while the Federal Government only reports 3,309, an under-reporting of 1,935 known cases in the State.
The City of Puerto Vallarta reports 500 total cases of COVID-19, while the Federal Government only reports 339, and under-reporting of 161 known cases in the city.
The Federal Government only reports COVID-19 cases detected in the public healthcare systems, cases diagnosed in private hospitals and laboratories are not reported, leaving the national totals far greater than being reported.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that Mexico is experiencing the most dangerous moment of the pandemic, so it urged the population to respect the “red light”, as well as hygiene and social distancing measures to avoid a flare-up of coronavirus.
In a virtual press conference, the WHO / PAHO representative in Mexico, Christian Morales, stressed that the population has the responsibility to continue reinforcing basic hygiene measures, since the COVID-19 epidemic is advancing towards its peak. He also said that the authorities must “make every effort to save lives.”
He added that, since there is no vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, prevention measures should continue to be applied in a period that could span 18 to 24 months.
“We are living through one of the most complex and most dangerous moments of the epidemic, where several states are either advancing towards the top, some are at the top and others have begun to descend, but still very close to the top.
So we have precisely a situation where the focus for the population has to be, respect the healthy distance measures dictated by the red traffic lights that characterize all the entities of the Mexican State,” he said.
While Mexico started intervening earlier than many countries, the government officials have continued to downplay the seriousness of the virus and has been reluctant to increase testings, keeping numbers low and allowing a false sense of security within the population. For the last four weeks, Mexico has informed citizens that the curve has flattened, cases are decreasing, and Mexico had ‘tamed’ the pandemic, all statements that allowed the population to feel more at ease, today’s numbers are a reflection of that false sense of security given by the federal government.
On the other hand, the Head of Government, Claudia Sheinbaum, presented the COVID-19 Case Detection and Protection Program.
This program seeks that, in the middle of the red light of maximum alert for coronavirus, all the basic rules are complied with, such as staying at home, caring for the most vulnerable sectors, responsible use of mask covers, healthy distance, among others.
In a videoconference, she assured that the program was carried out in coordination with all the institutions of the City, State of Mexico, and the Federal Government, such as the IMSS, ISSSTE, Sedena, Semar and it begins today, but it will be more strengthened in the following weeks.
This initiative includes five axes to reduce contagion in Mexico City with different strategies:
- A house-to-house information campaign, with staff from city halls and citizen service
- Early care protocol
- Strengthening of the SMS locatel system
- Detection of cases and their contacts, with telephone tracking
- Delivery of the kit to diagnosed people: an oximeter will be included in it for cases that present comorbidity
The Ministry of Health (SSa) reported this Wednesday, June 10, that the accumulated COVID-19 infections are 129,184, the number the government is . . .
