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China's virus death toll revised, Wuhan adds nearly 1,300 deaths

Posted at 7:53 AM, Apr 17, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-17 07:53:00-04

BEIJING (AP) — China's official death toll from the coronavirus pandemic has jumped sharply.

The hardest-hit city of Wuhan announced a major revision that added nearly 1,300 fatalities.

The new figures result from of an in-depth review of deaths during a response that was chaotic in the early days.

The revised numbers push up China's death toll to 4,632.

The higher numbers are not a surprise. It is virtually impossible to get an accurate count when health systems are overwhelmed at the height of a crisis.

The increase also confirms suspicions that many more people died in China than had been previously reported.