According to the country’s health official, those infected with COVID-19 who died are also “recovered” because they no longer show symptoms. The new novel coronavirus numbers suggest 1,26,681 people have died of the disease, and 4,86,622 have recovered so far. The ‘recovered’ tag is given to those who have tested positive for COVID-19, slowly got better, and subsequently tested ‘negative’ for the virus. In Chile, however, the ones who don’t get better and pass away from the virus, are also counted as ‘recovered.’ “We have 898 patients who are no longer contagious, who are not a source of contagion for others and we include them as recovered. These are the people who have completed 14 days of diagnosis or who unfortunately have passed away,” Mañalich announced at a press conference. It is unknown when Chile began including the dead among the number of people who have recovered. But the calculation has reportedly been adopted following validation by international health experts, the government claims. In Chile, the first case of coronavirus was confirmed on March 3. The virus began dramatically spreading in the following weeks, with now more than 7,900 confirmed sick and another reported 92 related deaths, according to official numbers More than 2,646 coronavirus cases have “recovered” from the virus in Chile. The country closed its borders in March and large parts of the Chilean capital, Santiago, home to around six million, were placed under lockdown. Schools and various public venues, including malls and movie theaters, and most non-essential services have been closed. Last week, the health ministry announced that those who have recovered from the virus will be given a “discharge certificate” and be exempt from adhering to quarantines or other restrictions.