France continues to see decline in virus cases, deaths

France on Tuesday continued to witness a decline in the number of coronavirus cases and deaths for the 13th day in a row, according to health authorities.

At a news conference, Jerome Salomon, the director general of health, said there were 548 new fatalities on Tuesday, with 404 of those in hospitals and 144 in nursing homes.

Since the start of the outbreak, the total number of deaths in hospital climbed to 12,900 and 7,896 in nursing homes.

Hospitalizations were reported at 29,984 on Tuesday, a drop of 400 compared to Monday. The number of those in intensive care also fell to 5,334 on Tuesday, a drop of 529 patients.

The total number of confirmed cases stands at 117,324.

Overall, 20,796 have died due to the coronavirus since the beginning of March in France, while 39,185 people have returned home after recovering fully from the virus.

The director general once again emphasized the social distancing and barrier gestures adhered to are having a positive impact on outcomes. Lockdown in France will stay in place until May 11.

After originating in Wuhan, China last December, COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, has spread to at least 185 countries and regions worldwide, with Europe and the U.S. the worst-hit regions.

There are more than 2.53 million cases worldwide and over 174,300 deaths. More than 669,000 have recovered from the virus, according to data compiled by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.