Global Statistics
More than 29.7 million people around the world have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, and 938,362 have died. Over 21,5 million have recovered. There have been at least 6,585,763 cases of coronavirus in the US, and at least 195,275 people have died.
Brazil’s health ministry reported 34,755 new Covid-19 infections and 1090 new coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday. That brings the country’s total number of coronavirus cases to 4,384,299 and raises the death toll to 133,207.
Brazil is the third-worst hit country in the world in terms of cases, behind only India and the United States. Brazil is second-worst in terms of deaths, with only the US having suffered more coronavirus fatalities so far.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says Europe is facing decision time about tackling COVID-19 as case numbers hit record highs, children return to school and summer recedes.
The UK has recorded 27 new deaths and 3,105 positive cases of COVID-19, up from 2,621 the day before, official statistics showed. Cases of the coronavirus have been steadily rising in the UK since the beginning of September, forcing the government to bring in tough new restrictions on public gatherings to prevent the virus from spreading further. The 27 deaths take the death toll within 28 days of testing positive to 41,664, one of the highest tolls in the world.
South Africa has recorded 772 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the country’s total confirmed cases to 651 521 on Tuesday. There have been at least 6,585,763 cases of coronavirus in the US, and at least 195,275 people have died.
The country has recorded 142 new COVID-19 related fatalities, pushing the death toll to 15 641. The number of recoveries now stands at 583 126, this translates to a recovery rate of 89,5%.
Chairperson of the COVID-19 Ministerial Advisory Committee, Professor Salim Abdool Karim, says after the reported decline of coronavirus infections, South Africa is ready to move to Alert Level 1 of the lockdown. Level 1 will see the opening of all sectors and interprovincial travel is set to resume after compliance with the Ministry’s Co id-19 regulations however there will be restrictions on international travel.
Zimbabwe has lifted a ban on inter-city travel and extended working hours as the government gradually reopens the economy by easing COVID-19 restrictions. The country of 14 million people has seen 7,576 cases and 224 deaths so far.
WHO chief scientist says pre-Covid life may not return until 2022.
It might not be until 2022 when the world can begin thinking about returning to “pre-Covid” life, Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, chief science officer at the World Health Organization in Geneva, said Tuesday.
“We’re looking at 2022 at least before enough people start getting the vaccine to build immunity. So for a long time to come, we have to maintain the same kind of measures that are currently being put in place with physical distancing, the masking and respiratory hygiene,” said Swaminathan, speaking to reporters during a virtual meeting hosted by the United Nations Foundation.
“Those will have to continue after the vaccine starts getting rolled out, because we need 60% to 70% of the population to have immunity before you will start seeing a dramatic reduction in transmission of this virus,” Swaminathan said.
“We also don’t know how long these vaccines will protect for — that’s the other big question mark: How long does immunity last? And it’s possible that you will need a booster.” Swaminathan added that health officials are currently looking to control the coronavirus that causes Covid-19, rather than eliminate it at this point. While a timeline remains uncertain and difficult to predict, “I think it’s safe to say that it could be 2022 when we will start thinking about going back to pre-Covid normal life,” Swaminathan said.
Swaminathan added that she doesn’t think the coronavirus will become a seasonal virus as time goes on, but instead we could expect to see “ups and downs” in cases and transmission.CNN
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