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HEALTH-VIRUS-ITALY-TOLL
Italy’s virus death toll tops 20,000
ROME, April 13, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Italy’s death toll from the novel
coronavirus topped 20,000 on Monday but its number of critically ill
patients dropped for the tenth successive day.
The 566 new deaths reported by the civil protection service take
Italy’s fatalities total to 20,465 — officially second in the world
behind the United States.
The drop in patients receiving intensive care from a peak of 4,068
on April 3 to 3,260 on Monday confirmed a general improvement in
Italy’s COVID-19 trends.
The rise in new infections dropped to a new low of just two percent.
The Mediterranean country last week extended its national lockdown
until May 3.
The decision has been backed by doctors but opposed by businesses
that doubt their ability to survive three more weeks of inactivity.
Italy will reopen some book shops and laundries on a trial basis on
Tuesday to see how social distancing measures can be safely enforced
down the line.
BSS/AFP/MRU/2250hrs