COVID-19 cases rise to 318 in Venezuela

After 7 new cases were confirmed, Venezuela has registered 318 COVID-19 cases since March 13, reported Vice-president of Communication, Culture and Tourism Jorge Rodríguez, who explained that recent cases were detected in the states of Nueva Esparta (4) and Táchira (3). At the Miraflores Presidential Palace, in Caracas, he pointed out that the cases detected in Táchira come from the Venezuela-Colombia border. Therefore, he informed that health authorities keep Venezuela’s western border under strict surveillance in the face of the lifting of quarantine in Colombia. Rodríguez explained that cases in Nueva Esparta are related to the hotspot detected in a baseball academy in the Gomez municipality and include children and adolescents. “97 cases in Nueva Esparta, making it the state with the highest number of COVID-19 cases. Most of the patients come from the hotspot in the baseball academy. If the managers there had observed the quarantine, Venezuela would have 31% less cases,” he explained. Rodríguez also informed that so far Venezuela has registered 128 recovered patients, representing 40.3% of the total reported cases. Regarding active cases, 95 are in hospitals, 58 in Comprehensive Diagnosis Centers (CDIs) and 27 in private clinics. He highlighted that most of the cases, with the exception of Nueva Esparta, come from Miranda (88), the Capital District (31), Aragua (29) and La Guaira (14). Ages range from 20-49; therefore, he urged young people to comply with social distancing measures in order to preserve their health. 394,125 Rapid Tests Done Rodríguez reported that 394,125 rapid tests have been done throughout the country. This number translates into 13,285 test por 1 million inhabitants. Venezuela has done 185% more tests than Chile, 229% more than Peru, 640% more than Ecuador, 891% more than Colombia and 955% more than Brazil.