Brazil's COVID-19 cases surge past 7 million

Brazils number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surged past 7 million on Wednesday, with an all-time high of more than 70,000 cases, according to the health ministrys daily bulletin. The total remains the worlds third highest, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.The ministry also reported 936 deaths from the disease.

Brazil's number of confirmed COVID-19 cases surged past 7 million on Wednesday, with an all-time high of more than 70,000 cases, according to the health ministry's daily bulletin. The total remains the world's third highest, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University.

The ministry also reported 936 deaths from the disease. Neither its newly reported deaths nor cases included data from Sao Paulo state, Brazil's most populous and where the toll has been heaviest. In a text message, the health ministry cited "technical problems," without elaborating. The number of cases and deaths in Latin America's largest nation has rebounded since local leaders eased restrictions and pandemic fatigue set in.

President Jair Bolsonaro, who has consistently undermined quarantine measures and downplayed the virus' severity, said at a public event last week that Brazil is at "the tail end of the pandemic."