TRINIDAD and Tobago was identified by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) as one of the countries in the Americas that are facing challenges in dealing with rising numbers of covid19 cases.

At PAHO's virtual covid19 news conference on Wednesday, director Dr Carissa Etienne said three out of the five countries in the world with the highest numbers of new infections are in the Americas.

"Many Caribbean islands like the Bahamas, Haiti and Trinidad and Tobago are seeing covid deaths doubled in the last week."

Last week there were over 1.2 million new covid cases and 31,000 deaths reported in the Americas, she said, despite a decrease in covid infections through the Americas in April, which offered "some reprieve to our beleaguered health systems,"

Etienne said Canada, Costa Rica, Panama and parts of Honduras had also seen sharp increases in the rates of covid19 infections. She also said PAHO saw increasing covid infections in Bolivia and French Guiana.

"In Brazil we see a pause in the decreasing trends that were observed during the previous weeks."

While there were overall reductions in covid19 cases in many South American countries, Etienne said, "Some hotspots in Argentina and Uruguay saw a doubling of cases and deaths in the last week."

She added that 90 per cent intensive care unit (ICU) occupancy rates in many pars of Brazil and Colombia are "a sign that these communities are still at a high risk of not getting the care that they need."

But Etienne said the US has seen a sharp reduction in covid infections, deaths and hospitalisations. She attributed this to almost half of the American population receiving at least one covid19 vaccine dose, and nearly 85 per cent of those over 85 being fully protected.

She said this was "a testament to the power of safe and effective covid vaccines."

Etienne condemned attacks against medical personnel in Colombia as they try to treat people infected with covid19 and deliver medical supplies where they are needed most.

"This must stop."

On May 14, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that in the last two weeks there had been over 100 attacks on healthcare workers and services across Colombia. The ICRC said workers were threatened and medical vehicles and personnel attacked.

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