Wuhan Doctor who worked with Whistleblower, died contracting pandemic

China again recorded fatality case in weeks, after Wuhan doctor who worked with whistleblower Li Wenliang died of the virus, on Tuesday, reported state media. Hu Weifeng, a urologist at Wuhan Central Hospital, passed away after being treated for COVID-19 and allied issues for more than four months, state broadcaster said.

He is the sixth doctor from Wuhan Central Hospital to have died from the virus, which emerged in the central Chinese city late last year. Cases have dwindled dramatically from the peak in mid-February as the country appears to have brought the outbreak largely under control.

The official death toll in the country of 1.4 billion people stands at 4,634 -- well below the number of fatalities in less populous nations.Wuhan Central Hospital has yet to give a formal statement on Hu's death. In early February it said some 68 staff members had contracted coronavirus.

Hu's condition became a national concern after Chinese media showed images of him with his skin turned black due to liver damage.

Beijing has since named him a national martyr, but suppressed much of the dissent and criticism sparked by his death.

China has not yet released a complete figure of the number of medical worker deaths from COVID-19, but at least 34 medics have been awarded posthumous honours by health authorities.

In February the National Health Commission said about 3,387 health workers had been infected.