Coronavirus deaths in China top 1,300 with big jump in cases as country expands diagnosis

The Chinese province at the center of the novel coronavirus outbreak reported a record spike in deaths Thursday, bringing the total number to more than 1,300 people globally, as experts warned the epidemic could "create havoc" in less prepared countries. Health authorities in Hubei announced an additional 242 deaths and 14,840 cases of the virus, known officially as Covid-19, as of Thursday morning, the largest single-day rise since the epidemic began and almost ten times the number of cases confirmed the previous day.

The government explained the spike as due to a change in how cases are tabulated -- the total will now include "clinically diagnosed cases" after rising numbers of residents complained about the difficulty in getting tested and treated for the virus.

"Clinically diagnosed cases" are those patients who demonstrate all the symptoms of Covid-19 but have been unable to be scientifically tested, or died before they were tested. The hope is that more people will be able to receive treatment by allowing doctors to diagnose them with the virus.
Almost 34,000 patients have been hospitalized across Hubei, the central Chinese province of which Wuhan is capital, including 1,400 or so in a critical condition. So far, 3,441 patients have recovered and been discharged. Globally, the virus has infected more than 60,000 people, with the vast majority of cases in mainland China. Only two deaths have occurred outside of China.

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