Red Cross warned Latin America was on the brink of health collapse due to coronavirus crisis

The International Federation of Red Cross Societies (FICR) warned that pandemic “far from over in America”, region with highest incidence of COVID-19 and which has reached its highest peak in deaths.

“The Americas currently has one of the highest daily death rates in the world, and in Latin America alone more than a million people have lost their lives to covid-19. This represents a third of the deaths in the world, ”the Red Cross said in a statement released on Friday.

Latin America: one million dead and 10 most affected countries

Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) shows America has 66.8 million cases of coronavirus and 1.6 million deaths, including 32.3 million infected and one million deaths correspond to Latin America.

“Newly confirmed cases in the region continue to increase; Ten of the fifteen countries that have reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases globally are in Latin America and the Caribbean. Uruguay, Argentina and Costa Rica top the list, followed by Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname and Brazil, where cases are increasing, ”said the Red Cross.

In addition, according to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Latin America reports 162 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, compared to a global average of 46 per 100,000 inhabitants.

Collapse and slow vaccination

“Health systems are at real risk of imminent collapse in many countries, such as Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, where cases and deaths are at the highest level since the start of the pandemic. The alarm bells are also ringing in Paraguay, Colombia and Bolivia “says Pedro Porrino, Emergency Health Coordinator for the Red Cross in the Americas.

According to the agency, this increase reinforces the need for maintain and affirm public health and protective measures, “Especially because the current availability of vaccines is insufficient and the vaccination rate in most parts of the continent remains dangerously slow“.

Martha Keays, IFRC’s regional director for the Americas, also warned that, “five months after the start of vaccinations around the world, less than two in a thousand vaccines have been administered in the poorest countries of the Americas“.

“Leaving the most vulnerable behind in immunization processes is a moral and public health disaster. Millions of lives depend on efforts to address disparities between and within countries, ”he added.

According to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), A total of 474.5 million doses were administered on the continent, but the gap between countries remains, with the US taking almost half of the doses placed in the region.

Added to this is the rebound of the pandemic in the region: Last week there were over 1.2 million new cases of COVID-19 and 31,000 deaths in America.

“These numbers have not changed in recent weeks, highlighting a worrying trend: cases and deaths stabilize at alarming levelsPAHO Director Carissa F. Etienne pointed out in her weekly report.

Increases in cases have been reported in countries such as Belize, Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama, where beds in intensive care units are more 80% of its capacity.

In the Caribbean, Trinidad and Tobago declared a national emergency following a recent epidemic, Cuba continues to report a significant increase and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines continues to experience peaks after its population has been reduced. transferred to shelters due to recent volcanic eruptions.

“In South America, new infections have declined in Chile, Paraguay and Peru, but Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil, after seeing some improvement, see an increase in cases again. Bolivia reports dramatic increase in cases and deaths, and Guyana experiences highest number of cases and deaths since pandemic began», Concluded the PAHO in its weekly report.

(With information from EFE)

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