Portugal to enter mitigation phase on Thursday. The country has 2,362 cases of Covid-19

In a press conference, the Secretary of State for Health, António Lacerda Sales, revealed that a new norm was published this Monday that “alters the paradigm of approaching the patient with suspected infection by Covid-19.” “It is about preparing the health system for a new phase, the mitigation phase of the pandemic, which will take effect from 00h on March 26th,” he said. Among the measures planned is the creation of an “area dedicated to Covid-19 in each health facility.”

The Secretary of State informed that the country has acquired new equipment for this new phase, adding that the “acquisition of 500 ventilators from China is underway, which will arrive by mid-April. Also, “280,000 tests have been ordered and this week 80,000 tests will arrive” for the new coronavirus.

2,362 people infected and 33 deaths

The health authorities discovered 302 new cases of infection by the new coronavirus, increasing the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Portugal from 2,060 to 2,362. The data collected also show that 33 patients have died from the virus since the beginning of the pandemic. 22 people have already recovered from the disease.

The evolution in the number of cases represents a daily growth of 15%, the lowest percentage in recent days. Only 251 people are subject to hospitalization, or about 10.6% of the total: 203 are in hospital and 48 are in intensive care units, according to the latest information from the Directorate-General for Health (DGS).

Most are located in the North region (1,130), followed by Lisbon and Vale do Tejo region (852), Algarve (46), Azores (12), Madeira (11) and Alentejo (6).