AMLO Has COVID-19/More Vaccines to Arrive

AMLO tests positive for COVID-19. Interior Minister Adán Augusto reported that President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is in good health with only mild symptoms after testing positive for COVID-19. In a video presented during the daily briefing, López Obrador showed his temperature and oxygen level to ensure that he is well and without the need to go to the hospital. “I am hoarse but fine. This message is to inform how I am, but also to convey my experience now that I have been infected again. I feel pretty good, so I think, hopefully, I will not have to be hospitalized or suffer. One advantage of the omicron variant is that its symptoms are not that serious. Take good care of yourself,” said López Obrador.

Yesterday, López Obrador announced that he woke up with hoarseness and was tested for COVID-19. “I woke up hoarse and felt a little sick. It is most likely a cold but I want to get tested anyway, to be sure." López Obrador is believed to have been infected last week when he met with various government associates, including SEMARNAT Minister Luisa Albores and Economy Minister Tatiana Clouthier, who announced that they were also infected with COVID-19. This is not the first time that López Obrador has been infected with COVID-19. A year ago, the president contracted the virus and was absent for 15 days from his presidential duties.

Omicron hits Mexico. Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell said that omicron is becoming the predominant variant in Mexico. However, unlike other variants, hospitalizations and deaths have not increased. “Omicron has a predominance of the upper respiratory tract but, fortunately, it has a lower proportion of damage in the lungs. Omicron is more like a common cold, so it won't be as serious as other variants."

The Ministry of Health announced that 135,000 Mexicans were infected with COVID-19 from Jan. 3 to 9. In the last 24 hours, 11,052 cases and 78 deaths related to omicron have been confirmed. In addition, the states that have reported the highest number of infections are Quintana Roo, Jalisco, Puebla, Guanajuato and Sonora. Last week, López Obrador said he did not expect the country to go through a fourth wave of infections. However, experts said that omicron will affect the country because although it does not cause hospitalizations and deaths like other variants, it would again hit health personnel and medical supplies.

Half of all elderly have received the booster vaccine. López-Gatell said 51 percent of the country’s elderly population had received a booster shot against COVID, demonstrating that vaccination is going well. In addition, he called on older adults who have not yet received the booster to go to their health centers and get vaccinated to remain protected. “This is an update on how the booster vaccination has progressed. So far, half of older adults have received a booster shot. We hope to finish the group soon. We call on health personnel to also get vaccinated, especially if they are older people. "

In December, the Mexican government started to administer a third dose to the elderly population. The country is administering an AstraZeneca booster regardless of which brand was used during the original vaccination scheme.

More vaccines to arrive in Mexico. Minister of Foreign Relations Marcelo Ebrard reported that the UN COVAX mechanism will deliver 26.7 million additional vaccine doses to Mexico, which are expected to arrive between January and March. “The first 11.7 million doses will be shipped soon and the remaining 15 million will arrive around March. We estimate that the figure that the Ministry of Health needs will be met. On the supply side we are satisfied."

The Ministry of Health reported that yesterday, 106,564 new vaccines were applied, with which the number of people with at least one vaccine rises to 152,051,707 million, which is 88 percent of the Mexican population. The government announced that since Dec. 23, 2020, 201,299,735 million doses have been administered. The Health Ministry said that some dosages have been wasted by not being applied; however, most have been used.

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