Mexico increases restrictions amid coronavirus

QUERETARO, Mexico

Mexico said it would now suspend school classes until next month, prevent events of more than 100 people and suspend some jobs Tuesday as it enters the “second phase” in coronavirus prevention.

“In Mexico, we haven’t yet arrived to the point of inflection or spreading from slow to accelerated, and this is an opportunity for Mexico because timely action has been taken,” Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said in a news conference.

The government said it was implementing the measures because of an increase in non-imported cases.

Classes will be suspended until April 19, which expands on the previous school closure. In addition, it postponed jobs that require movement from and to work.

Mexico promised a plan is in the works to make sure its elderly are able to stay home from work.

The government said some business owners such as Carlos Slim, the most successful businessman in Mexico, have promised not to fire anyone who does not show up for work during the pandemic.

But with 52% of the population living under the poverty food line, experts doubt jobs will stop completely as many live paycheck to paycheck.

Although experts believe the numbers are much higher, the country officially announced 367 cases, 826 suspected cases and four deaths from the virus.

Despite the government assuring the public it is prepared, Mexico trailed other countries in preventive measures with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador urging citizens to continue to frequent restaurants. He called staying indoors an “exaggerated” measure.

“We are going to continue to lead a normal life, and in the [right] moment, the president will tell you all when to protect yourselves,” he said Sunday.

By comparison, almost half of those in the United States are being asked to stay home. After emerging in Wuhan, China last December the virus known as COVID-19 has spread to at least 169 countries and regions. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a pandemic.

According to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed cases worldwide is more than 395,600 with the death toll exceeding 17,200, while greater than 103,000 have recovered.