COVID-19 deaths in Latin America and Caribbean reaches 1.1 million record

AFP’s new tally reveals that more than 90 %of deaths have been recorded in just five countries of the Americas that account for 70% of the region’s population. The death count has crossed one million.

Since the starting, the Coronavirus has affected the region of Latin America and the Caribbean with a devastating number of deaths.

Director of Pan American Health Organization Carissa Etienne stated “The lives of a million people have been cut short because of Covid-19. This is a tragic milestone for all of the region’s inhabitants. This pandemic is hitting Latin America hard, affecting our health, economies and entire societies. However, only three per cent of our population has vaccinated.”

Brazil continues to record the new daily deaths with an average of almost 2,000 this week, although that’s a one-third drop from six weeks ago when it exceeded 3,000.

At the other end of the colour, Bolivia and Ecuador are experiencing a daily deaths increase of 44 per cent and 35 per cent from last week.
Etienne blamed the slow vaccine rollout in the region for the problems. More than 153.5 million people in the Americas have been vaccinated against Covid-19, PAHO said, but only 21.6 per cent of those have been in Latin America and the Caribbean.

In the United States, almost half the people have gone through the vaccination by getting at least one dose while close to 85 per cent of the over 85s have had both, PAHO said.

Consequently, the country has seen a massive reduction in new cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Etienne said, “The progress we’re seeing in the United States is a testament to the power of safe and effective vaccines, but it underlines the vital importance of accelerating their access in all of our region, so our countries can immunize their entire populations. We urgently need more vaccines for Latin America and the Caribbean.”