6 more people died of 'fever' in North Korea, amid claims of a Covid outbreak
Key Takeaways:
- On Tuesday, just days after announcing its first Covid case, North Korea revealed six more deaths from "fever" and stated it was expanding military and pharmaceutical distribution.
- According to KCNA, 11,000 officials, instructors, and medical training students participated in an "extensive medical examination of all citizens" on Monday to locate anyone with a fever.
North Korea announced six more deaths from "fever" on Tuesday, just days after declaring its first Covid case, and said it was increasing military and pharmaceutical distribution.
The army has "urgently deployed its formidable soldiers to all pharmacies in Pyongyang City and begun to supply medicines," according to state broadcaster KCNA.
As of Monday evening, the country's "death toll stood at 56," according to the outlet, with more than 1,483,060 fever cases and at least 663,910 people receiving medical care.
The death toll comes despite North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordering national lockdowns in an attempt to halt disease transmission among the unvaccinated.
So far, Kim has slammed healthcare officials for a failed response to epidemic prevention, notably the inability to maintain pharmacies open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide medicine.
According to a KCNA report published Tuesday, "urgent steps have been taken to immediately fix the deviations in the delivery of pharmaceuticals," including the operation of pharmacies in Pyongyang 24 hours a day.
Kim has been at the center of North Korea's sickness response since the country declared the 1st Covid case last Thursday, attending near-daily emergency Politburo sessions on the epidemic, which he has stated is causing "grave disturbance" in the country.
In the meantime, 11,000 officials, instructors, and medical training students took part in an "extensive medical examination of all inhabitants" on Monday, according to KCNA, to find individuals with fever.
Experts claim North Korea has one of the poorest healthcare systems in the world, with understaffed hospitals, limited intensive care units, and no Covid-19 therapy medications or mass testing capability.