Covid-19 cases are once again surging in Europe, and data shows that the countries recording the biggest rebounds are lagging in vaccinations.
According to data from the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, cases have risen in almost every European nation over the last two weeks. In 13 of 45 countries, new cases have more than doubled. More than half of European countries with the biggest outbreaks rank in the bottom half when it comes to vaccination rates on the continent.
The outbreaks in Europe are currently among the most severe in the world; six of the 10 countries with the biggest case increases are on the continent. The increase is most severe in Eastern Europe: The Czech Republic, San Marino, Hungary and Poland lead the continent with new cases that are more than triple their mid-October levels.
Covid-related deaths across Europe have also spiked, with Hungary, the Czech Republic and Latvia accounting for the biggest increases in fatalities over the past two weeks.
Several Eastern European countries are facing slow vaccine rollouts. While more than 7 in 10 citizens in Portugal, Spain, Iceland, France and Ireland have received at least one dose, vaccination rates in Bulgaria, Ukraine and Belarus have yet to reach 30 percent.
By comparison, 67 percent of Americans have received at least one vaccine dose, and Portugal’s 87 percent vaccination rate is the second-highest in the world.
Officials at the World Health Organization have criticized the unequal distribution of vaccines, noting that wealthier nations have bought excess doses and have begun offering booster shots while poorer countries have struggled to receive adequate supply. The WHO released a letter from Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, during a meeting of the G-20 on Oct. 29 asking member nations to commit to sharing doses.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
