Russia admitted it has three times as many deaths from coronavirus than those recognized so far

The Russian government today reported that the death toll by coronavirus in the country, it is three times the number that had been officially counted since the start of the pandemic, on the same day that a registration system was launched for people over 60 years of age to register for vaccination. with vacuna rusa Sputnik V.

Official statistics indicate that if the number of deaths for different reasons in the periods January-November 2019 and 2020 is taken into account, in the last 229,700 more were verified, of which 186,000 are linked to the coronavirus.

Of these, 25,788 took place last November, the report released by Rosstat’s statistical office released today.

In the same vein, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova clarified that “more than 81% of the increase in mortality during this period is due to the covid-19 or the consequences of the disease. “

“We and every other country in the world will need to take a serious look at the overall structure of mortality and understand how many new deaths have actually arisen from the new disease,” he said.

The balance of 186,000 deaths represents three times the 55,265 deaths officially recorded since the start of the pandemic by the Russian government portal dedicated to the fight against the pandemic, the AFP agency replied.

So far, Russian authorities have only counted coronavirus deaths confirmed by an autopsy.

With new data released today by the government, Russia it becomes the third country in the world with the highest number of deaths from the disease, only behind the United States (more than 330,000 deaths) and Brazil (more than 190,000).

In addition, it already accumulates more than 3 million cases, after 27,787 new infections in the past 24 hours and 487 deaths, authorities reported.

In parallel, the Moscow municipal government today launched a registration system for immunization of people over 60, a process that will begin tomorrow, after the Russian Ministry of Health gave its approval over the weekend. -end last, to inoculation. of the vacuna Sputnik V to the elderly

“This is a good thing, because the elderly are the group most at risk when it comes to undergoing a severe phase of the vaccine,” Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said. DPA press.

Earlier this month, Russia started its vaccination campaign against covid-19 with the vaccine developed by Centro Gamaleya, a public institution registered in the world, last August.

Until the weekend, the vaccine It was only recommended for people between the ages of 18 and 60 pending the release of phase three results.

The first to be vaccinated were those most at risk of contracting the virus, such as health workers and teachers.

Last Saturday, the Russian Ministry of Health, on which the Gamaleya center depends, approved its use for people over the age of 60 and reported that the vaccine it was very effective – up to 90% – in phase 3 trials.