An 81-year-old patient became Guam’s third Covid -19-related death. The patient, who died at the Guam Memorial Hospital, had underlying health issues, which were compounded by Covid-19.
The man was admitted to GMH on March 26 and suffered from multiple comorbidities including diabetes, hypertension , heart disease and chronic obstructive lung diseases.
Officials said the patient had no recent travel history but initial investigations indicate the patient may have contracted Covid-19 from community contact.
As of April 1, Guam has 69 confirmed cases of Covid-19, according to the Department of Public Health and Social Services.
DPHSS tested 28 individuals on Tuesday, March 31 with conclusive results. Nine tested positive through DPHSS and 19 tested negative for SARS-CoV-2. The DPHSS overall count also includes four positive cases that were tested by the Naval Health Research Center in San Diego. Additional results will be provided later this evening once today’s test results are finalized.
ases
Most of Guam COVID-19 known positive cases have epidemiological links to other confirmed cases.
The 69 confirmed cases include reports of four positive confirmed cases that DPHSS received from the U.S. Naval Hospital that was tested through the Department of Defense and sent off island, officials said.
Te public health emergency remains in place until April 13 but Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said she will not hesitate to extend the directive as needed.
The Office of the Governor has launched a hotline for COVID-19 related inquiries. Call 311
"This administration is aware that this is causing an upheaval to our daily lives and in our economy," the governor said. "It may have seemed out of proportions to the numbers we saw late last week. However, as we were starkly reminded that with these recent passings and nne new confirmed cases, we are not out of the woods; far from it."
She said Guam will continue to see more deaths and more cases.
"I am honest with you because saving lives depend on not just government actions," she said. "It depends on all of you. We must remain vigilant but we must also remember that kindness and understanding are needed now more than ever."