The number of Covid-19 cases passed the half million mark on Friday, as new cases remained steady with 8,062 new infections reported in the last 24 hours.
Even though teh single-day rate was higher than Thursday’s, more tests were conducted and the positivity rate was lower than previous days.
But despite the plateau, deaths remained high. A total of 176 Covid-19 patients _109 men and 67 women _ succumbed to the virus in the past 24 hours.
The number of patients in a serious condition also remained high with 1,275 in intensive care units. Some 13,000 hospital beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.
The Strategic Communication Group said there were 35,500 tests carried out in the past 24 hours giving a positivity rate of 22.7%, lower than previous days.
Romania has now reported 500,273 cases since the pandemic reached the country and 12,052 Covid-19 related deaths.
Romania holds parliamentary elections on Sunday and the recent lull in cases may encourage voter turnout, which in any case is expected to be lower than usual.
The capital Bucharest reported almost 1,000 new cases, more than anywhere else. Cases stayed high in the Black Sea Constanta region which posted 431 new infections while Cluj, where Romania’s second largest city is located, also had more than 400 cases.
The deaths included two patients in their 30s, six in their 40s and 19 in their 50s. The rest were older than 60.
All but six of the deaths were patients with pre-existent health conditions such as cancer, diabetes or heart disease.
