PAHO Director Concerned About Slow Rate of Covid Vaccination

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Carissa F. Etienne has called attention to the slow rate of COVID-19 vaccination in the Caribbean and warned that controlling the virus will take years if current trends persist.

She said while the United States has fully vaccinated more than 40 percent of its population, the pace is much slower in Latin America and the Caribbean.

In Central America, only 2 million people have been fully
vaccinated; in the Caribbean, less than 3 million.

In some countries, including Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago, and Honduras, not even 1% of the population has been vaccinated.

Dr. Etienne called for “urgently” ramping up access to vaccines in Latin America and the Caribbean and prioritizing countries where vulnerable populations have yet to be protected.

Throughout the Americas, including North America, there were almost 1.2 million new COVID-19 cases last week and over 34,000 deaths.

Four of the five countries with the highest death counts in the world were in the Americas.