Madrid, March 30 (RHC)-- Spain has surpassed China in the total number of confirmed coronavirus infections, as the number of cases rose from 78,797 on Sunday to 85,195 on Monday.  The death toll rose by 812 to 7,340.

Officials in Madrid announced on Monday that the country's emergency health chief Fernando Simon tested positive for coronavirus infection on Sunday night.  This left the deputy health emergency chief, Maria Jose Sierra, to break the news that some 12,298 health workers in the country have tested positive for the disease -- amounting to roughly 14 percent of the country's confirmed cases.

According to the latest data China, the original source of the coronavirus pandemic, has 81,470 confirmed cases.  Spain remains behind Italy, the hardest hit country in Europe, with 97,689 confirmed cases resulting in 10,779 deaths.

In spite of the grim updates at the daily press briefing, the Spanish Health Ministry has mercifully noted a drop in the rate of new infections, following a spike midweek last week. 

On Wednesday, March 25th, Spain recorded a 20 percent surge in confirmed cases.  This dropped to just a nine percent rise in day-to-day new infections on Sunday, showing signs that Spain’s continuing emergency lockdown in combination with its frontline medical staff’s best efforts are turning the tide on the outbreak.