For today, a total of 2,031 new COVID-19 infections and 39 new deaths are counted, with a case fatality rate of 1.6%.
To date, there are 47,967 cases that remain active, of which 45,668 are in home isolation in homes and hospital hotels.
On the other hand, 2,299 patients are hospitalized, of which 215 remain in intensive care units and 2,084 are in the ward.
According to the epidemiological report issued by the Ministry of Health ( Minsa ), 199,694 people have recovered until today.
In the last 24 hours, a total of 6,855 tests have been carried out to detect COVID-19, maintaining a positivity percentage of 29.6%.
Some observers have argued that the Minsa reported case fatality rate (number of COVID linked deaths / number of known cases) in reality should be much lower, as the number of reported cases does not necessarily reflect the truth, as the testing does not cover the whole population, and many cases go undetected. At the same time, the government can't report what they don't know, but readers should note that the numbers may tell a different story from the reality.
Also, the method used in Panama to define how a 'COVID death' is counted is also unclear, as many of the deaths correspond to underlying previous conditions, such as cancer, blood diseases, other age related diseases etc., and are reported as COVID deaths since the patient also had the coronavirus. On the other hand, many viruses are known to lower the patient's immunity and expose them to other diseases. As an example most HIV/AIDS patients don't die from the virus itself, but from other derived diseases such as pneumonia or regular flu.
There have also been reports on the inaccuracy of the PCR test, which would compromise the figures mentioned above.
In lack of better information sources, PanaTimes continues to publish reports with the government (Minsa) announced figures. Readers are adviced to use their own judgement. We are happy to publish more accurate reports, if they become available to us or our contributors.