WUHAN, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Hubei, the province hardest hit by the novel coronavirus in central China, was cleared of confirmed novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases on Sunday, the provincial health commission said Monday.

The last 12 patients on Sunday were cured and discharged from hospitals in Wuhan, the provincial capital and former epicenter of the epidemic, bringing the existing number of COVID-19 cases in the province to zero.

No new confirmed cases and no new deaths were reported on Sunday, the commission said.

By the end of Sunday, the province had 582 asymptomatic cases under medical observation, including 18 reported on Sunday.

To date, Hubei has reported 68,128 confirmed COVID-19 cases in total, including 50,333 in Wuhan.

By Sunday, 63,616 cases were cured and discharged from hospitals in the province, including 46,464 in Wuhan. A total of 4,512 people died, of which 3,869 were reported in Wuhan.