The number of officially confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ukraine has reached 669 as of 10 a.m. on April 1, Deputy Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said during his online morning briefing.
Seventeen people have been killed by the disease, an increase of four people since the previous update on the evening of March 31. Ten people have recovered from the virus as of the morning of April 1.
In total, 120 new cases of COVID-19 have been registered in Ukraine since March 30.
According to Lyashko, the health ministry currently includes anyone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 and died in the death toll from the novel coronavirus.
“It doesn’t mean that in all 17 cases coronavirus caused the death,” Lyashko said during the briefing. He did not provide any examples of what this meant.
Lyashko said the health ministry is studying all COVID-19 deaths in Ukraine and will publish a document on the its website with information about all 17 cases soon.
Most people who died from COVID-19 in Ukraine had diabetes, Lyashko said. Additionally, people with chronic heart diseases and individuals who are immunocompromised are in the highest risk category.
Lyashko also said that Ukraine had received testing kits and medical supplies from China, including protective glasses and hazmat suits, respirator masks and more.
The new testing kits will allow Ukraine to test nearly 100,000 patients with suspected coronavirus.
According to Lyashko, on March 31 President Volodymyr Zelensky had an online meeting with oblast governors and city mayors during which they discussed the country’s preparedness to fight coronavirus.
According to Lyashko, Ukraine has already allocated nearly Hr 3.7 billion ($134.4 million) to prevent the rapid spread of CODIV-19, Hr 732 million ($26.6 million) of which has already been spent.
As of April 1, the largest numbers of new coronavirus cases in Ukraine were registered in Kyiv (27 new cases) and in Chernivtsi Oblast (20 new cases).
The largest overall numbers of coronavirus cases in the country have been registered in Kyiv and its oblast (191 cases), Chernivtsi Oblast (104 cases), Ternopil Oblast (98 cases), Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (64 cases), Cherkasy Oblast (52 cases) and Vinnytsia Oblast (49 cases) as of April 1.
The health ministry says it has received a total of 3,178 reports of suspected coronavirus cases, 536 of which were sent in the past day.
Globally, COVID-19 has killed at least 42,364 people and infected 860,964 people as of April 1; 178,538 patients have recovered. The United States, Italy, China, and Spain are the countries most affected by the disease.
CORONAVIRUS IN UKRAINE: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
- As of April 1: 17 people have died from COVID-19 in Ukraine; 3 Ukrainians died in Italy. 10 people have recovered.
- 669 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ukraine as of early on April 1. The first case was identified on March 3.
- Ukraine has extended its quarantine measures until April 24.
- Infographic of quarantine measures in place until April 24.
- The measures shuttered most everything but hospitals, supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, gas stations, and other critical enterprises.
- How the Ukrainian government has been responding: TIMELINE
- Misinformation on coronavirus is going viral in Ukraine.
- Doctor’s advice: How to stay safe.
- Foreign Ministry: What you need to know about traveling to and from Ukraine now
- Why the Kyiv Post isn’t making its coverage free in the times of COVID-19.
- Coronavirus stops the Kyiv Post’s print edition for now.
- Where to buy masks.
Effects on the economy:
- COVID-19 is already inflicting harm on Ukraine’s economy.
- Invisible Threat Lurks Undetected: Top stories from March 27, 2020 PDF edition.
- The former minister of economy says half a million Ukrainians may lose their jobs in the COVID-19 crisis.
