Jun 2, 2021 - World

Mexico's COVID death toll jumps after review

Rebecca Falconer

A woman visits two family members who died of COVID-19 while a 10-year-old boy works placing crosses at the San Miguel Xico cemetery on August 5 in Mexico — A woman visiting two family members who died of COVID-19 while a 10-year-old boy places crosses at the San Miguel Xico cemetery in Valle de Chalco, Mexico. Photo: Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty Images

Mexico's health ministry increased the country's total COVID-19 pandemic death toll by 4,272 to 227,840.

Driving the news: Jose Luis Alomia, the ministry's head of epidemiology, told reporters the revision was due to previously suspected cases being confirmed, per Reuters. "We will likely be seeing these adjustments not only in deaths but also in cases," Alomia warned.

He stressed that the deaths were "not part of the recent epidemic activity."

The big picture: Mexico has one of the world's highest coronavirus death rates.

A lack of testing availability means "many Mexicans have died at home or never got a test," AP notes. "So the government searches death certificates for mentions of symptoms related to COVID-19."
The ministry's announcement comes one day after Peru officials raised the country's COVID-19 death toll to 180,764 after a review, giving the country the worst pandemic death rate per capita.

Go deeper: True COVID-19 death toll is double the official numbers, study finds

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Mexico's COVID death toll jumps after review

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