Russia records highest COVID deaths in July

MOSCOW:  According to a new report from the federal statistics agency of Russia, the country had recorded number of deaths in the month of July.

According to the Rosstat agency, 50,421 people died from COVID-19 during the month, a substantial increase over the previous high of 44,435 in December.

Only 38,992 deaths were related directly to the disease, according to the reports of agency. In another 5,206 deaths, the virus was suspected to be the primary cause but further investigation was required; in 1,449 other cases, the virus played a role but was not the primary cause of death.

The virus was not only reason to blame for other 4,844 deaths of people, according to Rosstat.

According to the research, the overall number of virus-related deaths in Russia by the end of July was 215,265 — far more than the national coronavirus task force’s estimate of 180,840. Russian officials attribute this to differing counting methods, claiming that the task force considers deaths caused by COVID-19.

Officials further claim that the task force collects its data from medical facilities, whereas Rosstat gets its data from civil registry offices, where a death is officially registered.

Russia’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign has lagged behind other countries. Barely a quarter of the country’s 146 million people had received at least one vaccine shot as of mid-August, while on the other hand only 20% people had been fully vaccinated.

Vaccinations are now required for certain types of employees in several regions, including those in health care, education, retail, public transportation, and government offices.