Mexico: Second Country with Most COVID-19 Deaths?

Last Saturday, Mexico’s Health Ministry reported 567 COVID-19 deaths, adding up to 201,429 since the beginning of the pandemic, reported Proceso. However, that same day, the Ministry of Health published a report stating that COVID-19 deaths amount to 321,059, meaning the number of deaths is 60 percent higher than the official numbers, reports Proceso. This would place Mexico not as the third country with most deaths due to COVID-19 but as the second, having about 14,000 more deaths than Brazil on Mar. 27, according to JHU CSSE COVID-19 Data.

What About Vaccines?

Last Sunday, Mexico received the largest batch of vaccines against COVID-19 from the US, reported El País. As previously reported by MBN, Joe Biden, AMLO and Marcelo Ebrard announced last week that the US was going to send 2.7 million vaccines to Mexico. The US sent 1.5 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccines on Sunday and the rest will be delivered in April. 

Marcelo Ebrard announced their arrival on Twitter: “with this new batch we will have received 12.32 million vaccine doses.” He later thanked US President Joe Biden, “Mexico thanks President Biden’s government for authorizing AstraZeneca to send 2.7 million doses of vaccines into our country. This very significant support comes at a critical time and highlights the great cooperation between both nations,” Ebrard tweeted. 

The announcements coincided with the Mexican government’s new restrictions on its Southern border to contain the pandemic and reduce migration into the US from Central America, reports El País. “The matter has been resolved on good terms for us and the people of Mexico. I thank the President of the US for agreeing to send us these vaccines,” said the Mexican President, AMLO, on his daily conference, according to El Universal.

Mexico is underway with the vaccination of people over the age of 60, which involved 870,000 doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine. However, the country did not have enough vaccines to administer the second dose. Both doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccines have to be administered within an 8-to-12-week margin. To speed up their administration, public and private organization are collaborating to package them locally. “AstraZeneca’s vaccine began to be packaged this morning. A few more days for its sanitary approval are pending but with it we can expect a significant amount of vaccines,” announced Arturo Herrera, Head of SHCP, on Mar. 26, reported Forbes Mexico.