The COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have reached Mexico in February 2020. However, the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT) reported two cases of COVID-19 in mid-January 2020 in the states of Nayarit and Tabasco, one case per state. As of August 15, there had been 517,714 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Mexico and 56,543 reported deaths.
On January 30, 2020, before the declaration of a pandemic by the World Health Organization the Government of Mexico designed a Preparation and Response Plan that was made by the National Committee for Health Safety, a working group led by Secretariat of Health composed by different health entities aiming to act upon the imminent arrival of the pandemic. This group carried out a series of alert measures, rehabilitation and updating of epidemiological regulations based on the International Health Regulations.
On March 17, 11 new cases were confirmed, raising the national total to 93, with Campeche being the only state with no confirmed cases. Mexico’s limited response, including allowing a large concert and the women’s soccer championship, as well as a lack of testing, have been criticized. Critics note that president López Obrador does not practice social distancing but continues to greet large crowds, and the borders have not been closed. Of particular concern is the health of thousands of migrants in temporary camps along the border with the United States.
On March 18, 25 more cases were confirmed raising the total to 118 cases and 314 suspected cases.Authorities in Jalisco are concerned about a group of 400 people who recently returned from Vail, Colorado; 40 people have symptoms of COVID-19. On March 17, 11 new cases were confirmed, raising the national total to 93, with Campeche being the only state with no confirmed cases.On March 22, bars, nightclubs, movie theaters, and museums were closed in Mexico City. Governor Enrique Alfaro Ramírez of Jalisco announced that beginning Thursday, March 26, Jalisco and seven other states in the Bajío and western Mexico will block flights from areas such as California that have a high rate of coronavirus.
The number of coronavirus cases surges past 10,000 to 10,544 with 970 deaths on April 21. The death toll surpassed the 1,000 figure on April 23.Tijuana expects its hospitals to run out of space over the weekend.On May 1, Mexico surpassed 20,000 infections of COVID-19. Mexicanos contra la corrupción (Mexicans against corruption) alleged that Léon Manuel Bartlett, son of Manuel Bartlett the head of the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), fraudulently tried to sell overpriced ventilators to the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) in Hidalgo.On May 2, Mexico surpassed 2,000 deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
An article published on The New York Times on May 8 assured that both the federal government and the state government of Mexico City ignored the wave of coronavirus deaths in the capital city. The article criticized the way that President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been handling the pandemic citing the lack of testing done and the fact that the government has been hiding the real number of COVID-19 cases and deaths. More than 100 health workers (doctors, nurses, orderlies, etc.) are among the 3,573 dead from the virus on May 12.Between May 9 and May 15, 13,000 new cases were confirmed. The totals were 42,595 cases, 10,057 active cases, and 4,477 deaths on May 15.On May 22, the number of new cases and deaths reported in 24-hours reached a record high of 2,973 respectively.
On August 4, the Secretariat of Health reported that 4,732 people who spoke an indigenous language have been infected with COVID-19 and, of those infected, 798 have died.Mexico passed the mark of 50,000 deaths on August 6.The United States Department of State classifies travel to Mexico as “high risk.”On August 13, the Carlos Slim Foundation announced they were going to finance the effort of Mexico, Argentina, the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca to produce and distribute the production and distribution of the vaccine against COVID-19 .
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