COVID-19 pandemic in Panama
The COVID-19 pandemic in Panama is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Panama on 9 March 2020.[3] One of the dead was a 64-year-old male, who also suffered from complications of diabetes and pneumonia.[4] Of those infected, 83 were admitted to hospital.[3] The infected individuals belong to the 29-59 age group and had each recently travelled abroad.[5] A 13-year-old girl died of COVID-19 on 23 March.[6]
| COVID-19 pandemic in Panama | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Disease | COVID-19 |
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | Panama |
| First outbreak | Wuhan, Hubei, China |
| Index case | Tocumen International Airport |
| Arrival date | 9 March 2020 (11 months) |
| Confirmed cases | 327,654[1][2] |
| Active cases | 27,738[1][2] |
| Recovered | 294,410[1][2] |
Deaths | 5,506[1][2] |
| Fatality rate | 1.68% |
As of 8 February 2021, a total of 327,654 confirmed cases, 294,410 recoveries, and 5,506 deaths have been reported in the country.[1][2]
The government declared a state of emergency on 13 March 2020. The move frees US$50 million for a period of 180 days to purchase goods and services to combat COVID-19.[7]
A gender-based quarantine system was set up, where only women were allowed to leave their homes on some days and only men were allowed out on other days. The purpose of this was so police would be able to easily tell if someone was violating their quarantine. However, the plan led to harassment of transgender and non-binary people.[8]
Background
On 12 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019.[9][10]
The case fatality ratio for COVID-19 has been much lower than SARS of 2003,[11][12] but the transmission has been significantly greater, with a significant total death toll.[13][11]
On December 16, 2020, Panama approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, which is scheduled for administration in the first trimester of 2021.[14]
Timeline
See also
References
- "Casos de Coronavirus COVID-19 en Panamá". Ministerio de Salud de la República de Panamá (in Spanish).
- "Ministerio de Salud de Panamá". Twitter (in Spanish). Ministry of Health (Panama). 2021-02-08. Retrieved 2021-02-09.
- "Panama reports first coronavirus death, seven more people infected". Reuters.
- "March 10 coronavirus news". CNN. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
- "Panama records Central America's first coronavirus death". The Straits Times. 11 March 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
- Panama: 13-year-old girl with coronavirus dies, officials say Al Jazeera, 23 March 2020
- Panama declares a state of national emergency and announces measures against the coronavirus (in Spanish) by Abel Alvarado, CNN en Español, 13 Mar 2020, retrieved 20 March 2020
- Tracy, Matt. "Panama's Trans Community Struggles With Gender-Segregated Quarantine Days". Gay City News. Schneps Media. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
- Elsevier. "Novel Coronavirus Information Center". Elsevier Connect. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- Reynolds, Matt (4 March 2020). "What is coronavirus and how close is it to becoming a pandemic?". Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. Archived from the original on 5 March 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- "Crunching the numbers for coronavirus". Imperial News. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- "High consequence infectious diseases (HCID); Guidance and information about high consequence infectious diseases and their management in England". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 3 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- "World Federation Of Societies of Anaesthesiologists – Coronavirus". www.wfsahq.org. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- "Costa Rica y Panamá aprobaron el uso de emergencia de la vacuna contra el coronavirus de Pfizer". infobae (in Spanish). Infobae. December 16, 2020. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
External links
- Casos de coronavirus en Panamá Updated infographic on the number, location, severity, and demographic distribution of cases in Panama
- US Embassy in Panama: COVID-19 Information Includes summary in English of measures the Panamanian government has taken to slow the spread of the virus
