Brazil's COVID-19 death toll reaches 650,000

RIO DE JANEIRO. KAZINFORM - Brazil recorded 370 deaths related to COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, bringing the national death toll to 650,000, the Ministry of Health reported Wednesday, Xinhua reports.

In the same day, 30,995 new COVID-19 infections were reported, raising the total caseload to 28,842,160.

The COVID-19 mortality rate in the country was 309 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, while the incidence rate rose to 13,725 per 100,000 inhabitants.

Brazil has the second-highest COVID-19 death toll in the world, surpassed only by the United States.

The South American country had managed to reduce deaths and infections in the second half of last year thanks to mass vaccination, but the spread of the Omicron variant has caused a new surge.