• VACCINATION: Mexico jump-started Monday its coronavirus vaccination effort after weeks of dwindling supplies and thanks to the arrival of 810,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine on Sunday. Amid long lines, the focus of the new phase is to begin the vaccination of adults over 60 in 320 municipalities.
•DELAYS: With delays particularly in northern states like Nuevo León and Tamaulipas due to the weather, older adults across Mexico formed long lines outside vaccination centers hoping to get their first dose. Prior to Monday, only health workers in Mexico had access to the Pfizer-BioNech vaccine.
•ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: “It must be recognized that the opening of vaccination was not with the speed and finesse that was required”, said Hugo López Gatell, Mexico’s undersecretary of health. Mexico is one of the worst hit countries in the world by the pandemic ranking number three by absolute deaths.
•NUMBERS: As of early Tuesday, officials reported 87,472 vaccine doses applied on Monday, bringing the total number of doses administered in Mexico to 813,785. Taking in account the arrival of the first shipment of AstraZeneca’s vaccine, the total doses received by Mexico is 1,636,350.
