WHO Suspends Hydroxychloroquine and Chloroquine Testing

Mexico is about to resume activities next Monday in several municipalities. IMSS has asked for companies and employees to take an online test to see if they comply with the correct preventive measures before dabbling into the “new normal” reality.

Here is the week in health!

COVID-19 in Mexico

• According to President López Obrador, “the pandemic has been tamed. The risk of saturation at hospitals that would have meant loss of human life has already been removed. Fortunately, this has already been overcome.” However, the Mexico City Governor announced a day before that the capital presented a slight increase in hospital occupation over the week, having a 72.7 percent occupation and a 55 percent saturation regarding intubated patients. The president, nevertheless, has confirmed he will resume his national tours next week.
• The value of testing has been exposed once more as Deputy Minister Hugo López-Gatell admitted that a number of serological tests have delivered fake results, according to a report posted by CDC.
• The fourth plane with ventilators from the US has arrived to the country. With this shipment, Mexico has received a total of 311 medical devices. Hamilton is the manufacturer behind this last shipment.
• Mexico City’s subway has released a plan to avoid crowding at stations and wagons to comply with social-distancing measures. As the new normal begins on Monday, here are some things to consider before going back to the office.

Chaos Amid the Pandemic

• The black market of medicine has increased amid the pandemic. Robbery to medicine transportation has grown 20 percent and Puebla, Tlaxcala and Veracruz are among the most affected states. COPEFRIS has posted five sanitary alerts on the subject, warning that Facebook is a common market for these products.
• Citizens of Mexico City identified a fake hospital that receives COVID-19 patients. According to neighbors, the building was originally a clinic that transformed into a hospital from one day to another. The Ministry of Health has already announced the breach. However, the hospital is still operating.
• The US is the country with the highest number of deaths due to COVID-19 in the world with over 100,000 deceased.

COVID-19 Treatment and Vaccine

• AstraZeneca, a strong contender in the vaccine race, has announced an increase in its investment in Mexico for clinical research to conduct a study to avoid intubation of COVID-19 patients. The investment adds to the company’s US$5-7 million yearly investment in the country.
• The Lancet published a study on hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine – both on trial for a possible COVID-19 treatment – that found an increased risk of death associated with both medications. The study considered 96,000 positive COVID-19 cases at 671 hospitals in six continents from December 20, 2019 to April 12,2020. According to the report “the main outcomes of interest were in-hospital mortality and the occurrence of de-novo ventricular arrhythmias.”
• GSK has announced its plans to produce 1,000 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The British company is the major vaccine producer worldwide and has said to be in talks with other governments to achieve a major production of the possible SARS-CoV-2 vaccine.