RIO DE JANEIRO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd March, 2020) The coronavirus death toll in Brazil now stands at 18, with over 1,000 COVID-19 cases having been confirmed in the country, health ministry official Wanderson Kleber de Oliveira said.
"The total number of positive cases is 1,212, 18 have died, the mortality rate is 1.6%," Oliveira said on Saturday.
Earlier, the country's health ministry announced that the death toll was 11, with over 900 coronavirus cases registered.
Most of the cases have been registered in Sao Paulo (119) and Rio de Janeiro (459). In Sao Paulo, a two-week quarantine will be imposed starting from Tuesday, according to Governor Joao Doria.
On Friday, Brazilian Minister of Health Luiz Henrique Mandetta said that the health care system of the country would face the threat of collapse in late April over the spread of COVID-19. According to the minister, the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in Brazil will occur in April-June.
