PAHO Director warns of COVID-19 surge in the Americas

As COVAX delivers 2.2 million doses of vaccine and situations upward thrust, divulge is described as “an brisk public successfully being emergency’

Washington, D.C. March 23, 2021 (PAHO)– Pan American Properly being Group (PAHO) Director Carissa F. Etienne applauded the arrival of over 2.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines procured thru COVAX however warned that the virus is surging dangerously in many countries in the space.

COVAX, the world alliance to ensure equitable win admission to to COVID-19 vaccines, has helped bring over 2.2 million  doses to the space to this point, including higher than 1 million doses that arrived in exhausting-hit Brazil on Sunday. More doses are expected to arrive this week in Suriname and Belize, and an additional 1.2 million doses had been procured thru COVAX.

But “the COVID-19 virus is no longer receding, neither is the pandemic starting to head away,” Dr. Etienne warned in her weekly media briefing. “Vaccines are coming however they are aloof a number of months away for many of us in our space,” she said, urging of us to continue to admire public successfully being measures – masks, hand washing, and social distancing – especially during upcoming holidays. “Other americans can not let down their guard by engaging in shut contact with others.”

“Though scale-up has begun, we comprehend it’s no longer ample,” she continued. “We finish no longer but delight in the vaccines we prefer to guard all americans. It’s what occurs when the entire world should always rely on too few producers. We must always additionally find ways to share vaccines extra equitably among countries.”

As the identified procurement agent for COVAX in Latin The US and the Caribbean, PAHO’s Revolving Fund negotiates, purchases and handles cargo logistics on behalf of the 36 countries participating in COVAX.

In the previous week, over 1.2 million of us had been infected with COVID-19 in the Americas, higher than during the old week, while 31,272 of us died of the virus, Dr. Etienne reported.

The pandemic is mainly dire in South The US, the build infection is reported to be spiking in Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.“In Paraguay, a majority of ICU beds are occupied, and the successfully being machine is buckling below the strain,” Dr. Etienne said.

“The virus continues to surge dangerously across Brazil,” she continued. “Cases and deaths are increasing, and ICU bed occupancy could be very high in many states.” In neighboring Venezuela, infection is on the upward thrust, in particular in the border states of Bolivar and Amazonas. Bolivia has reported an increase in situations in the Pando division, while “ICU bed occupancy remains very high in Loreto, Peru.”

The pandemic is accelerating in other locations in the Americas, including Guatemala, the build increasing situations and hospitalizations are “straining clinic bed skill because of the influx of patients,” Dr. Etienne said. In the Caribbean, situations are increasing in Cuba, Aruba, Curacao, and Antigua and Barbuda. In Jamaica, situations delight in risen progressively for a number of weeks. In Canada, Ontario sigh has reported increased situations in the final two weeks while the U.S. states of Minnesota and West Virginia delight in reported rising deaths.

“What I’ve factual described is an brisk public successfully being emergency,” Dr. Etienne said. “As the virus surges and hospitalizations upward thrust,” she continued, “we urgently should always scale up vaccination among our most vulnerable populations.”

Over 155.8 million doses of the vaccine, including the COVAX deliveries, had been rolled out in the Americas, and in the Caribbean and Latin The US immunization campaigns are underway in 33 of the 35 countries with beef up from PAHO. The group is additionally assisting the two countries, Haiti and Cuba, that delight in but to begin immunization.

“The doses that had been delivered are helping us start to guard medical examiners and other vulnerable communities, and we inquire extra doses to arrive a week,” Dr. Etienne said, reporting that acceptance of vaccines has been high. “These WHO-current vaccines are safe, and they work,” she said. “When it’s your flip, don’t hesitate. Win vaccinated.”

Pointing out the Americas’ long history of a hit immunization against polio, measles, flu, and yellow fever, she said, “once our provide increases, there is no longer another space in the world greater ready to bring vaccines all of sudden and safely,” she said. “Our medical examiners delight in special trip driving successfully-organized-scale vaccination campaigns that quilt numerous geographies.”

“PAHO has been providing training and technical beef up to countries so they delight in stronger skill to be aware detrimental occasions, which is ready to be serious as recent vaccines are developed and introduced into the space,” she highlighted. “Here is a remarkable achievement, and a credit score to countries for making vaccination a precedence and to medical examiners for their dedication to keeping our space safe.”

She additionally reminded countries of the upcoming March 24 World Tuberculosis Day, a world match to grab consciousness about the devastating influence of TB and include the WHO intention of eliminating the illness by 2050.

“We prefer to uphold our commitments to minimize the burden of TB in our space and around the world,” she said. “If there’s one thing I’m hoping we snatch from this pandemic, it’s an appreciation for the strength of successfully being – and the blueprint magnificent successfully being is central to the wellbeing of societies…. Equal win admission to to magnificent successfully being. That desires to be our focal point. That’s how we discontinue TB. That’s how we beat COVID-19.”

Contacts

Daniel Epstein


Nancy Nusser


Sebastián Oliel

mediateam@paho.org