Europe Overtakes Latin America As Region With Most COVID-19 Cases; Some Countries Reinstate Lockdowns As Cases Rise Again

Devex: Latin America no longer region with most COVID-19 cases
“The world region with the highest COVID-19 caseload is no longer Latin America and the Caribbean, Pan American Health Organization Director Carissa Etienne announced Wednesday. A resurgence of the disease in Europe means it has overtaken the Americas, which had led in the number of coronavirus cases for months…” (Welsh, 10/22).

Washington Post: Why countries are resorting to pandemic lockdowns again
“The lockdowns are back. On Thursday, Ireland is set to become the first country in Europe to impose a second national lockdown as cases of the novel coronavirus surge once again. … The return of lockdowns highlights an uncomfortable reality: Despite significant medical advances in the treatment of covid-19 and an unprecedented race to find a vaccine to beat the virus, the only proven measures to stop its rampant spread as of yet are crude, perhaps draconian limits on human interaction…” (Taylor, 10/22).

Additional coverage of lockdowns, mortality in the second wave, and COVID-19 outbreaks outside of the U.S. is available from Financial Times, NPR, and Washington Post.

The KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report summarized news and information on global health policy from hundreds of sources, from May 2009 through December 2020. All summaries are archived and available via search.

KFF Headquarters: 185 Berry St., Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA 94107 | Phone 650-854-9400
Washington Offices and Barbara Jordan Conference Center: 1330 G Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 | Phone 202-347-5270

www.kff.org | Email Alerts: kff.org/email | facebook.com/KFF | twitter.com/kff

The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news, KFF is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California.