COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico

details of ongoing viral outbreak in Mexico

The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached Mexico in February 2020. However, the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT) reported two cases of COVID-19 in mid-January 2020 in the states of Nayarit and Tabasco, one case per state.[3]

COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico
Confirmed cases (as of May 8)
Number of confirmed deaths by state
DiseaseCOVID-19
Virus strainSARS-CoV-2
LocationMexico
First outbreakWuhan, Hubei, China
(via Italy and the United States)[1]
Index caseMexico City and Los Mochis
Arrival dateFebruary 28, 2020
(4 years, 1 month and 2 days)
Confirmed cases40,186
Active cases9,378
Suspected cases24,865
Severe cases1,735 (severe)
378 (mechanical ventilation)
Recovered29,990 Estimated[2]
Deaths
4,220
Government website
coronavirus.gob.mx
Suspected cases have not been confirmed by laboratory tests as being due to this strain, although some other strains may have been ruled out.

As of May 13, there had been 40,186 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Mexico and 4,220 reported deaths,[4] although the Secretariat of Health said in early May 2020 that there were more than 104,562 cases in Mexico.

Background change

On January 12, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a large group of people in Wuhan, Hubei, China, which was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) on December 31, 2019.[5][6]

Early action change

On January 22, 2020, the Secretariat of Health issued a statement saying that the novel coronavirus COVID-19 was not a threat to Mexico. 441 cases had been confirmed in China, Thailand, South Korea, and the United States. A travel warning was issued on January 9.

First cases change

On February 28, Mexico confirmed its first three cases. A 35-year-old man and a 59-year-old man in Mexico City and a 41-year-old man in the northern state of Sinaloa tested positive and were held in isolation at a hospital and a hotel. They had travelled to Bergamo and stayed in Italy for a week in mid-February.[7][8][9][10]

López Obrador's reaction change

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador did not take the pandemic seriously such as the impact of coronavirus. He said "Pandemics ... won't do anything to us," and criticized the press and the opposition for its reportage.[11]

A poll showed that 63% of Mexicans feared contracting COVID-19 and 25.5% feared dying from it. 28% said they were not willing to stay in their homes. 38.6% believed President López Obrador was handling the situation well, and 37% disapproved.[12]

References change

  1. "Confirman siete casos de coronavirus en México". informador.mx (in Spanish). March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  2. "Covid-19 México" (in Spanish). May 13, 2020. Archived from the original on December 7, 2020. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  3. "Covid-19 CONACYT" (in Spanish). April 21, 2020.
  4. Redacción (May 13, 2020). "México supera los 4 mil muertos por Covid; van más de 40 mil contagios". El Universal (in Spanish).
  5. Elsevier. "Novel Coronavirus Information Center". Elsevier Connect. Archived from the original on January 30, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
  6. Reynolds, Matt (March 4, 2020). "What is coronavirus and how close is it to becoming a pandemic?". Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  7. "Mexico Confirms Its First 2 Coronavirus Cases". CBS Los Angeles. February 28, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  8. Foundation, Thomson Reuters. "Mexico confirms first coronavirus cases in two men returned from Italy". news.trust.org. Archived from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2020. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  9. México, Gobierno de (February 28, 2020). "La @SSalud_mx confirmó dos casos de coronavirus en México, el primero en la capital y el segundo en Sinaloa. Se trata de pacientes de bajo riesgo que están siendo atendidos. Invitamos a la población a seguir informada y tomar medidas de prevención". @GobiernoMX (in Spanish). Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  10. "Van 3 casos confirmados de coronavirus en México". El Financiero (in Spanish). Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  11. "As Mexican peso collapses over coronavirus threat, criticism falls on president Lopez Obrador" Los Angeles Times 2020/03/20 accessed March 20, 2020
  12. "Coronavirus en México: crece el descontento con el gobierno de AMLO y el temor al contagio". Infobae (in Spanish). March 23, 2020.