COVID-19: France reports lowest number of deaths yet

By Cindi Cook

PARIS (AA) - Monday marked week four of de-confinement for France, and a continual easing of lockdown restrictions, with cafes, bars, and restaurants set to open, along with the lowest number of deaths reported yet by France's Health Ministry.

A total of 31 deaths in hospital were registered on Monday, a drop of four cases from Sunday. The total number of fatalities to date in hospital is 18,506, and the total in nursing homes is 10,327.

Since the start of the outbreak, the death toll in France stands at 28,833 with cases of infection rising slightly, to 152,091, an increase of 338 cases over the previous day.

The number of hospitalizations fell Monday with cases standing at 14,288, a drop of 34 patients from the day before. Those in intensive care fell to 1,302, down 17 patients from Saturday.

Despite the severity of the virus, most people experience mild symptoms before recovering. Since the beginning of record-keeping for the disease, 68,440 people have recovered in France from the epidemic and have returned home.

After originating in China last December, COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has spread to 188 countries and regions across the world.

The pandemic has killed almost 374,000 people worldwide, with total infections reaching just over 6.23 million, while nearly 2.7 million people have recovered from the disease, according to figures compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.