The head of Germany's disease control agency says the number of people who die of COVID-19 is likely being undercounted.
Lothar Wieler of the Robert Koch Institute said Friday that he believes “we have more dead than are officially being reported.”
It wasn't immediately clear whether Wieler was suggesting that deaths are being undercounted only in Germany, or worldwide, and reporters were unable to ask follow-up questions during his online news conference.
Germany's low death rate from coronavirus has drawn international attention. Experts say the difference compared to other countries is partly due to mass testing and well-equipped hospitals, but they caution that the number of deaths is likely to rise.
According to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University, Germany had almost 85,000 confirmed cases and 1,107 deaths by Friday. Wieler said one reason why deaths might be higher than thought is that by the time autopsies are performed the virus can't be detected anymore.