Delta Variant Found In Latin America

News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., Thurs. July 1, 2021: Cases of COVID-19 continues to rise in most of Latin America the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO said Wednesday. This as the highly transmissible Delta variant has already been detected in a dozen countries in the region, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Peru and Mexico.

PAHO director Carissa Etienne today also warned that given the significant gaps in vaccine coverage and the still imminent risk of infection in the region, now may not be the ideal time for travel to Latin America. Only one in ten people have been fully vaccinated, which Etienne said, adding that it is “an unacceptable situation.”

According to a Reuters tally, there have been over 37 million reported infections and some 1.2 million confirmed deaths caused by COVID-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean combined. Most are in Latin America.