Spain coronavirus mortality rates fall sharply since peak of pandemic, top health official says

A worker at an egg stall in Valencia's Central Market serves a customer after the Ministry of Health authorized the whole of the Valencian Community to move to phase 1 of the de-escalation on Monday, May 18, in Valencia, Spain. Iván Terrón/Europa Press/Getty Images

The number of daily deaths due to coronavirus in Spain fell to 59 on Sunday, the lowest daily figure since March 16, according to data reported by the Spanish Health Ministry on Monday.

The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Spain stands at 27,709.

Of the total cases, the number of health workers infected is 51,090, representing 22% of all Covid-19 infections in the country, according to the Health Ministry.

The mortality rate is significantly declining, from 11% at the height of the epidemic at the end of March, to 2% at the beginning of May, Dr. Fernando Simón, the country’s Director of the Center for Health Emergencies, said at a briefing Monday.

Simón said the government has instituted a new system for reporting Covid-19 cases, allowing for detection and treatment much more quickly.

This has cut the time between a person showing symptoms to being diagnosed with the virus down to 4 days, from between 7 to 17 days previously.