MEXICO CITY, June 24 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mexico reported 16,133 new COVID-19 cases in the country on Thursday, the highest daily number reported since late February, according to data released by the Health Ministry.
The increase is a signal that another wave of the virus is spreading through the country, experts say.
“What we have been identifying over the last nine weeks is a progressive increase in the frequency of cases,” Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said in a regular news conference.
Lopez-Gatell said most cases in the country are of the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which cause cold-like symptoms.
“And even more encouraging is that deaths are also being kept under control,” he said.
Mexico recorded an average of 24 deaths a day over the past seven days, according to Health Ministry data.
The ministry said that 4 per cent of general hospital beds were filled with COVID-19 patients, while 1 per cent of emergency beds were filled.
Lopez-Gatell said the rate at which cases are increasing is encouraging “because it suggests that … the protection that we all have, either because we suffered from COVID-19 or because we were vaccinated, or both, works and makes the spread slower than it was”.
Earlier this month, Mexico opened registration for children ages 5 to 11 to receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. — NNN-AGENCIES
