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Coronavirus pandemic

Russia to buy 1,200 more ambulances

So far, a total of 2,777 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia

© Sergey Medvedev/TASS

MOSCOW, April 2. /TASS/. The Russian government has allocated 5.2 bln rubles ($67.09 mln) from its reserve fund for the purchase of ambulances. The corresponding document, signed by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, was published on Thursday on the official government website.

"In order to ensure that medical organizations are ready to receive patients with a new coronavirus infection, 5.2 bln rubles was allocated from the reserve fund of the Government for the purchase of 1,200 ambulances for the needs of the Russian regions," the statement said.

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Russian scientists ready to develop coronavirus cure from survivors’ blood in 30 days

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus - named COVID-19 by the WHO - have been reported in every corner of the globe, including Russia.

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. To date, more than 900,000 people have been infected worldwide and over 45,000 deaths have been reported.

So far, a total of 2,777 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 190 patients having recovered from the illness. The country’s latest data indicates 27 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public informed about the coronavirus situation.

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