The COVID-19 pandemic in Costa Rica was a part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Costa Rica on 6 March 2020, after a 49-year-old woman tourist from New York, United States, tested positive for the virus.
As of 9 August 2022, Costa Rica has reported 1,057,695 positive cases, and 8,774 deaths.
As of 31 March 2022, there have been 10,166,273 vaccine doses applied. Among these, 4,336,171 are first dosages, 3,971,404 are second dosages, and 1,858,698 are third doses .
Background
On 12 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019.
The case fatality ratio for COVID-19 has been much lower than SARS of 2003, but the transmission has been significantly greater, with a significant total death toll.
Control measures
The government has declared a color coded alert system for the control and containment of the pandemic, as follows:
- Green (Information): No reported cases, but neighboring countries exposed.
- Yellow (Moderated): Accelerated increasing of epidemiological variables, high hospital occupancy, low control of cases.
- Orange (High): Increasing of epidemiological variables, medium hospital occupancy, acceptable control of cases.
- Red (Extreme): Extreme hospital occupancy.
The epidemiological variables are:
- Canton risk by attack rate (weekly): New cases by canton population divided by new national cases, 66% of weight.
- Slope and variation coefficient (triweekly): Weekly increase or decrease in the active cases of a canton, 33% of weight.
More specific details, formulas or algorithms for the alert color designation of the cantons or districts have been kept secret and has not been released as of July 2020, which has been contested by local government of the cantons, commerce associations, journalists and open data activists.
As of August 2020, only Yellow Alert or Orange Alert has been used to designate the administrative areas of the country, with differentiated restrictions on each area.
Timeline
February 2020
On 22 February, a 54-year-old male Costa Rican citizen arrived from Tocumen International Airport in Panama, he started to show symptoms on 28 February, and due to his work at the San Rafael Hospital in Alajuela, a cluster was formed starting with some of his family members, patients and coworkers. It was treated as a suspicious case, and confirmed on 7 March.
March 2020
On 5 March, the Costa Rican Ministry of Health announced that it was investigating a possible first case of coronavirus in the country. It was a 52-year-old Costa Rican woman from the canton of Pococí, who visited Italy and Tunisia and returned to the country on 29 February without symptoms. The pertinent tests were carried out on the woman and they were sent to the Costa Rican Institute of Research and Teaching in Nutrition and Health (Inciensa) to either rule out or confirm the case. However, this case was ruled out 24 hours after the test was performed.
On 6 March, the first case in Costa Rica was confirmed. The individual was a 49-year-old American woman who had arrived on a flight from New York on 1 March. She did not exhibit symptoms at the time. She was isolated in a San José lodging along with her husband who had also been in contact with infected persons in New York.
On 7 March, four new cases were confirmed. One of them was directly related to the first case, both being US citizens who were visiting Costa Rica. The other cases are Costa Ricans.
On 8 March, another four new cases were confirmed, two of them were imported. Some patients were located at public hospitals while most of the foreign nationals remained at their respective hotels.
On 11 March, a total of 22 confirmed cases was given by the Minister of Health of Costa Rica. 14 men and 8 women of which 19 are Costa Ricans (one of them a pregnant woman) and the other 3 are from other countries. They range from the ages of 10 to 73 years old. It was also announced by the health authorities that there were confirmed cases in the Costa Rican cantons of Alajuela, Escazú, Desamparados, Grecia, Heredia, San José, San Pablo, Santa Cruz and Tibás.
On 13 March, the Ministry of Health confirmed cases found in the provinces of San José, Alajuela, Heredia and Guanacaste, plus now the province of Cartago.
On 15 March, a total of 350 educational centers have been closed down. Three patients were placed in ICU. Health authorities also confirmed cases in the cantons of Santa Ana, Grecia, Nicoya, La Unión, Poás, Pérez Zeledón, San Pablo and Barva.
On 17 March, new cases were confirmed in the cantons of Cartago and Curridabat.
On 18 March cases were confirmed in the cantons of Goicoechea, Moravia, Santo Domingo, and Santa Bárbara. One senior citizen, an 87-year-old man, died on 18 March and is the first COVID-19 death in Costa Rica. He was one of 25 people part of the initial cluster in Alajuela.
On 19 March, the first case was also announced in the province of Limón, in the canton of the same name. On the afternoon of 19 March, the Ministry of Health announced two more cases in Ciudad Quesada, in the canton of San Carlos.
Later, on 19 March, the health authorities announced the second death of a patient with Coronavirus in Costa Rica. It was an older adult, of 87 years old, and resident of Alajuela.
On 20 March, the Ministry reported the recovery of the first two patients with the virus, who were the two American tourists who were isolated in a hotel in San José. New cases were also reported in the cantons of Vázquez de Coronado and Montes de Oca.
On 22 March, there were the first case in Aserrí and the first case in the province of Puntarenas, this one in the city of San Vito, Coto Brus canton.
On 24 March, the cantons of Jiménez, Liberia and Montes de Oro reported their first cases.
On 25 March, the first cases were reported in the cantons of Orotina, Alvarado, Belén, Flores, Puntarenas and Garabito.
On 26 March, the first cases were reported in the cantons of Sarchí, Oreamuno, El Guarco and Tilarán. Lastly, 5 people were reported to be in intensive care in hospitals. A total of 22 health care workers have contracted the virus so far.
On 27 March, the first cases were reported in the cantons of Tarrazú, Mora, San Ramón and Carrillo.
By 28 March, so far 52 health workers of the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social or CCSS) have contracted the virus. The first cases were reported in the cantons of Alajuelita, Turrubares and Naranjo.
On 29 March, the Ministry of Health reported the first case in the canton of Osa.
On 30 March, the Minister of Health warned that the country had just started climbing the curve of cases. The first case was reported in canton of San Isidro.
April 2020
On 1 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Esparza.
On 3 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Hojancha.
On 4 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Paraíso.
On 6 April, there are eighteen recovered patients.
On 7 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Turrialba.
On 8 April, the first recovery of an intensive care patient in the country was reported.
On the afternoon of April 8, the Ministry of Health confirmed the third death of a patient with Coronavirus in Costa Rica. It was a 45-year-old man, without risk factors, and a resident of San José.
On 9 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Siquirres.
On 10 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Puriscal.
On 11 April, the first case was confirmed in the canton of Pococí.
On 15 April, the Health Ministry reported a cluster of cases in a CCSS call center in San José, where up to 31 cases of COVID-19 were reported.
On the morning of April 15, the Ministry of Health confirmed the fourth death of a patient with COVID-19 in Costa Rica. It was an 84-year-old man, with risk factors, and who was admitted to the San Juan de Dios Hospital, in San José.
December 2020
- 9 December: Costa Rica acquires 14 ultracold freezers to store COVID-19 vaccinations.
- 23 December: First shipment of 10,725 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine are received, vaccination starts 24 December 2020 by vaccinating two elderly citizens and healthcare personnel.
Government response
March 2020
On 8 March, the Costa Rican Ministry of Health and the National Emergency Committee (CNE) raised the sanitary alert level to yellow.
On 11 March, the University of Costa Rica ordered its teachers to suspend all face-to-face classes and implement a virtual teaching modality.
On 12 March, the Minister of Health stated Costa Rica will not close its borders to international visitors at that time.
The CNE has launched the brand new 1322 COVID-19 help line. Leaders of Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic signed an agreement for dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. It includes canceling the Costa Rican film festival.
On 15 March, the Ministry of Education of Costa Rica decided to temporarily suspend lessons in a total of 317 educational centers, representing 7% of Costa Rica's educational centers. Closures included educational centers with confirmed cases of COVID-19, all public schools for special education, educational centers belonging to the same school circuit as the educational center where a confirmed case was identified, and educational centers that have been affected by prolonged water rationing.
Moreover, an executive agreement between the President of the Republic, Carlos Alvarado Quesada, and the Minister of Health, Daniel Salas, granted health authority to the members of the Costa Rican Public Force (the police enforcement agency) for the surveillance and control of the virus, both to verify the closure of bars, clubs and casinos, as well as to ensure 50% of visiting capacity for the other meeting centers. Businesses that do not comply with the new sanitary policy will be subject of a 30 day long closure.
On 16 March, the government also decreed a state of national emergency, due to the threat of the virus after being present in the country for only 10 days. In addition, lessons were suspended in all public and private schools and colleges until 4 April. Access to the country was also reduced to only Costa Ricans and permanent residents, a measure that will start a minute after midnight on 18 March and last until 12 April. Those entering must remain in quarantine for at least 14 days.
On 20 March, after the school kitchen workers refused to serve students, the Ministry of Public Education (MEP) agreed on delivering food packages to the parents of their students.
On 23 March, the Ministry of Health and the Government announced new prevention measures against the virus, including the total closure of beaches in the country, the mandatory closure of temples and religious services, and vehicle restriction in the main cities of the country from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.. All residents and refugees will lose their migratory status if they leave the country for any reason.
On 24 March, the government announced they will temporarily reduce their in person workforce by 80% and also void the salary raise approved last January for all public servants except for the police force.
On 26 March, the Finance Minister discussed a bill that the government would be presenting later on. This bill would mean the creation of a solidarity tax that would be deducted from all workers' salaries that earned more than ¢ 500.000. Its goal was helping people impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Hours later president Carlos Alvarado published that he would not support that bill and stated that "Plan Proteger" consisted of protecting the unemployed and workers already impacted by salary reductions.
On 27 March, the Government announced the extension of the sanitary vehicle restriction on weekends from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. In addition, the Government announced that it was evaluating the implementation of a temporary solidarity tax on wages above ¢ 1.1 million, a measure that would raise up to ¢ 25,000 million per month, however, the Government announced that other sources of income will be processed and that it will present an extraordinary budget of ¢ 225,000 million.