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UK Prime Minister says he owes his life to the medics

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Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he owes his life to the staff of Britain’s state-run National Health Service, in his first comments since being released from intensive care for treatment for COVID-19.

FILE PHOTO: Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures during a press conference on the steps of the Government buildings in Dublin on September 9, 2019./AFP/Getty Images.

Johnson, 55, was taken to St Thomas’s Hospital in central London a week ago, suffering from persistent symptoms of the disease caused by the new coronavirus. On April 6 he was moved into intensive care, where he remained until April 9.

“I can’t thank them enough. I owe them my life,” Johnson said of the staff at the hospital, which is just across the River Thames from the Houses of Parliament. The comments were released to journalists and confirmed by his office on Sunday.

Johnson was back on his feet by Friday, taking short walks between periods of rest, in what his office described as the early stage of recovery.

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