Recoveries outstrip coronavirus fatalities in Portugal for first time

THE number of people making a full recovery from coronavirus in Portugal now outstrips the number of people who have lost their lives to Covid-19 by a wide margin.

The latest Health Directorate General figures show another 307 patients have fought off the virus in the last 24 hours, putting the recovery total at 917.

In the same period there were another 27 deaths related to Covid-19, putting fatalities at 762.

“For the first time, the number of recoveries is greater than the number of deceased”, stressed Secretary of State for Health Antonio Lacerda Sales at a press briefing on Tuesday.

The global mortality rate stands at 3.6 per cent, but for over-70s this rises to 12.7 per cent, Lacerda Sales explained.

He also highlighted the statistic for hospitalisations, which represents just 5.5 per cent of cases, while only 1.1 per cent are in intensive care.

Portugal’s new infections since Monday have increased by 516, or by 2.5 per cent, to 21,379.

Portugal is continuing with a strategy of mass testing. Since March 1 more than 274,000 tests have been carried out across the country, half in public laboratories, 45 per cent in private labs and five per cent in labs linked to investigation, according to the Secretary of State.

Asked about the impact of the pandemic on care homes for the elderly, Lacerda Sales reported there were residents or staff has tested positive in 300, representing 12 per cent of the total.

Also taking part in the briefing was Health Directorate General Graça Freitas, who was questioned about the safety measures be putting in place so that Parliament can commemorate the April 25 anniversary of the Carnation Revolution which brought an end to Portugal’s dictatorship in 1974.

The issue of whether to mark the occasion or not has created a certain level of controversy in the country, with some questioning whether a gathering in the chamber should be allowed when the whole country is on lockdown.

“Parliament has taken all the necessary and sufficient measures to comply with the current rules”, she commented, with a limited number of people allowed in and establishing a minimum distance in the seating area.