Global COVID-19 death toll surpasses five million 

The global death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed five million on Monday in less than two years as many countries struggle to procure enough vaccines to inoculate their populations.

World is in the middle of global crisis that has not only devastated poor countries but also humbled wealthy ones with first-rate health care systems.  

Globally, coronavirus is now the third leading cause of death, after heart disease and stroke.

Together, the United States, the European Union, Britain and Brazil — all upper-middle- or high-income countries — account for one-eighth of the world’s population but nearly half of all reported deaths. The U.S. alone has recorded over 740,000 lives lost, more than any other nation.

The staggering figure is almost certainly an undercount because of limited testing and people dying at home without medical attention, especially in poor parts of the world, such as India. 

Hot spots have shifted over the 22 months since the outbreak began, turning different places on the world map red. 

Now, the virus is pummeling Russia, Ukraine and other parts of Eastern Europe, especially where rumors, misinformation and distrust in government have hobbled vaccination efforts. 

In Ukraine, only 17% of the adult population is fully vaccinated; in Armenia, only 7%.

Wealthier nations with longer life expectancies have larger proportions of older people, cancer survivors and nursing home residents, all of whom are especially vulnerable to COVID-19, El-Sadr noted. While, poorer countries tend to have larger shares of children, teens and young adults, who are less likely to fall seriously ill from the coronavirus.

India, despite its terrifying delta surge that peaked in early May, now has a much lower reported daily death rate than wealthier Russia, the U.S. or Britain, though there is uncertainty around its figures.

Wealth has also played a role in the global vaccination drive, with rich countries accused of locking up supplies. The U.S. and others are already dispensing booster shots at a time when millions across Africa haven’t received a single dose, though the rich countries are also shipping hundreds of millions of shots to the rest of the world.

Moreover, Africa remains the world’s least vaccinated region, with just 5% of the population of 1.3 billion people fully covered.

The pandemic has united the globe in grief and pushed survivors to the breaking point.

Furthermore, 92% of Bergamo’s eligible population have had at least one shot, the highest vaccination rate in Italy. 

COURTESY: APP