Mexico Covid Cases Rise by Record as Pandemic Surges Anew
Mexico Covid Cases Rise by Record as Pandemic Surges Anew
(Bloomberg) -- Mexico saw a record rise in Covid-19 cases Wednesday as the spread of the pandemic accelerates after several months of relief from the virus.
Cases rose 22,711 to 3,020,596, according to Health Ministry data. Deaths increased by 727.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has reiterated that while cases are increasing, the proportion of severe illness that leads to death is lower than it was during the winter peak. At a morning press conference, the president touted the vaccine campaign and encouraged people to get a shot.
“There are infections, but there are fewer hospitalizations, and more importantly, fewer deaths, because the vaccine is helping a lot,” Lopez Obrador said.
The vaccination campaign in Mexico had gained momentum recently with the country reaching about 1.45 million jabs July 27 -- the highest amount yet -- and more than a million shots a day for the next two days. Still, through Aug. 10, Mexico hadn’t reached a million doses administered in a day, and only about 22% of people in the country are fully vaccinated, according to Bloomberg’s vaccine tracker. The country administered slightly more than 781,000 doses Tuesday, according to the Health Ministry.
General hospital bed occupancy nationwide has climbed above 50% and the Health Ministry is reporting steady daily rises. In Mexico City, the delta variant is now responsible for nine out of every 10 cases, the capital’s health minister Oliva Lopez said on Aug. 6.
Despite the insistence of Lopez Obrador and his Covid czar, Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell that the pandemic hasn’t been as grave, Mexico has registered larger daily increases in deaths. Health officials recorded 786 new deaths Tuesday, the highest daily rise since early April.
Mexico has the world’s fourth-highest number of deaths due to the pandemic at 246,203, and officials have acknowledged the true toll is actually much higher.
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