Brazil reports nearly 50,000 new Covid-19 cases

Brasilia, Aug 20 (IANS) Brazil reported 49,298 new Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, raising the total caseload to 3,456,652, the Ministry of Health said.

Meanwhile, 1,212 more patients died from the disease in the same period, taking the death toll to 111,100, reports Xinhua news agency.

With these tallies, Brazil currently accounts for the second highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths, just after the US.

It is also the country with the maximum amount of infections and fatalities in Latin America.

Sao Paulo, the most populated state in the country and the epicentre of the pandemic, has registered over 721,000 confirmed cases and 27,591 deaths, followed by Bahia, Ceara and Rio de Janeiro.

Sao Paulo’s regional government authorized cities to decide whether they can start in-person classes at primary and secondary schools starting from October 7, with health and social distancing measures in place.

–IANS

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