Belgium on Wednesday scrapped over 100 deaths off its national Covid-19 death toll after regional officials announced a recount of coronavirus deaths recorded in nursing homes.
"On 26 August 2020, the numbers regarding Covid-19 deaths [in the country] will be updated, following the reception of new data concerning deaths in Flemish nursing homes," health institute Sciensano announced in a press release on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, 121 deaths were scrapped from Belgium's overall coronavirus death toll, bringing the total number down to 9,878.
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The update was made after Sciensano received "missing individual data" from Flemish authorities regarding Covid-19 deaths in nursing homes, according to a note added to the national health institute's coronavirus dashboard.
The retroactive recount was done using data regarding the age, sex and date of death of nursing home residents in Flanders and revises all deaths recorded over a period of just over two months which includes the height of the first wave of the epidemic in Belgium: from 18 March to 2 June.
Reports on Belgian media indicate that the recount concerns deaths that were counted twice in nursing homes in Flanders and also in Brussels.
The drop in the national Covid-19 death count comes as recent figures saw Belgium's inch towards the 10,000-death mark, with 9,992 deaths recorded on Monday.
Sciensano officials are set to give more detailed information about the recalculation of Belgium's national Covid-19 death toll in a press conference at 11:00 AM on Wednesday.
The Brussels Times
