PAHO: 75% of Latin America, Caribbean not vaccinated

The Pan-American Health Organisation said 75 per cent of people in Latin America and the Caribbean have yet to be fully vaccinated against covid19.

Director Dr Carissa Etienne said 540 million doses of vaccine needed to be delivered to the region to cover 60 per cent of the population.

Speaking at PAHO’s weekly media briefing on Wednesday, she said the organisation is focusing on strengthening manufacturing capacity for medicines and vaccines in the region and is accelerating its drive to expand vaccine access.

“There are three priorities to achieving vaccine coverage in the region. The first is receiving more vaccine donations, and we are urging more countries around the world to donate.

"Next, we need to let public health, not policies, guide our vaccine response, and prioritise the elderly, healthcare workers and those with pre-existing conditions.

“The third priority is getting vaccines into arms as soon as they arrive, so countries must ensure that logistics, cold-chain facilities and communication plans are in place. Currently we are working to overcome the hurdle of syringes.”

Etienne said, in addition to asking for donations from developed countries towards Covax, another measure PAHO was taking to expand vaccine access was through its revolving fund.

“We would use the fund to procure covid19 vaccines for our member states so the countries can complement the vaccines they are purchasing or they are receiving through Covax and other bilateral deals, and so be able to achieve the high vaccine coverage that will be necessary to control the transmission.

"We have already received requests from some 24 countries for these vaccines, which will be made available in the last quarter of this year and for 2022.”

She said last week PAHO launched its new digital platform as part of its work to strengthen manufacturing capacity in Latin America and the Caribbean.

“The first concrete initiative under this platform is to facilitate the tech-transfer process to ensure regional ability to manufacture mRNA vaccines against covid19.

"Thus far we have received some 32 proposals from private and public companies that want to participate in this crucial endeavour. These proposals are now being analysed and the results will be announced by the end of September.

“This is part of a long and sustainable process to reduce our dependency on imported medicines, vaccines and medical supplies in this region.

During this pandemic, she said, it became evident how dependent the region was on imported medical supplies which can cause shortages and jeopardise the response of countries in the region. The situation needed be improved to make the region better able to respond to future emergencies and to increase accessibility for its health systems.

She said PAHO wants to have all the medical products that can be produced under the regional platform initiative to be genuine regional public health goals, using the strategic fund for medicine and the revolving fund for vaccines to benefit all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.

PAHO Health Emergency Information and Risk Assessment Unit chief Dr Enrique Pérez-Gutiérrez issued a warning against the use of ivermectin, a drug used in animals, to treat people with covid19, except in the context of clinical trials.

“We have identified 29 randomised controlled clinical trials that assess ivermectin in patients with covid19, and only 15 of those studies reported on clinically important outcomes. Many of these trials had incomplete information, and also significant methodological limitations. Seven of these trials with fair methodological limitations reported no significant reduction in mortality, mechanical ventilation and probably no improvement in time for symptom resolution."

He reminded: "The WHO and PAHO recommend NOT to use ivermectin in patients with covid19 except in clinical trials. Management must focus on providing access to medications and clinical interventions that are proven effective for saving lives as the pandemic unfolds.”