Mexico Confirms First COVID-19 Cases

Mexico confirmed its first three COVID-19 cases on February 28, 2020 — two in Mexico City and one in Sinaloa, all linked to travel in northern Italy. Despite WHO warnings from late January, AMLO did not convene the constitutionally mandated General Health Council until March 19. In late February and early March he continued to appear in public, kissed supporters, and encouraged Mexicans to continue dining out and attending fiestas, distributing religious cards he claimed protected against illness. He promoted the phrase 'Hugs, not bullets' was now adapted to 'hugs, not isolation.'