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1 1 (December 17, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govdcyu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Updated December 17,2020 Latin America and the Caribbean: Impact of COVID-19 The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVD-19) pandemic is having widespread economic, social, and politicaleffects on Latin America and the Caribbean, a region with strong congressional interest because of deep U.S. linkages. As of December 15, 2020, the region had over 14.1 million confirmed cases (19.4% of cases worldwide) and almost 473,000 deaths (29.2% of deaths worldwide). Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, and Peru have the highest numbers of deaths in the region, and Brazil has the highest death toll worldwide after the United States. The rankings change in terms of per capita deaths-Peru has the highest recorded deaths per capita in the region, followed by Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, and Chile (see Table 1). Brazil and Mexico are currently experiencing a surge in cases, and some observers are concerned about a potential post- Christmas surge throughout theregion in early 2021 as countries let their guards down over the holidays. A Univers ity of Washington COVID-19 projection model forecasts deaths in Latin America and the Caribbean could reach more than 646,000 by April 1, 2021. Experts and observers haveexpres sed concern that some countries, such as Mexico, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, are significantly undercounting their death tolls. Many observers have expressed special concern for Venezuela, where the health care systemwas collapsing prior to the pandemic. (See CRS In Focus IF11029, The Venezuela RegionalHumanitarian Crisis and COVID-19). The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has played a major role in supporting countries in preventing, detecting, andresponding to the pandemic. Whenthe pandemic first began to surge in the region in May 2020, PAHO Director Dr. Caris s a Etienne expressed concern about thepoor and other vulnerable groups at greatestrisk, including those living in cities, towns, and remote communities in the Amazon Basin (including indigenous communities); people of African descent; migrants in temporary settlements; and prisoners in crowdedjails. In July 2020, PAHO is sued an alert urging countries to intensify efforts to prevent further spread of the virus among indigenous communities in the Americas. In September 2020, PAHO warned about increasing cases in Central America and the Caribbean. Now, PAHO is helping countries prepare for a successfulrollout of vaccines and facilitating access to vaccines under the COVAX mech anis mdeveloped by the World Health Org anization and other global health organizations. Before the pandemic, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected 1.6% economic growth for the region in 2020; in its October 2020 forecas t, the IMFprojected an 8.1% economic contraction for the region, with almost every country in recession. Economic recovery may be a protracted process in countries that rely heavily on global trade and investment. Caribbean nations that depend on tourismface deep economic recessions, several with projected gross domestic product declines well over 10% in 2020, according to the IMF. Likewise, several South American nations hard hit by thepandemic are projected to register economic contractions over 10%. Although most Latin American and Caribbean countries are expected to begin to recover economically in 2021, the expected regionalgrowth rateof 3.6% lags behind the expected world economic growth forecastof5.2%. Table I. COVID-I9 Cases, Deaths, and Mortality Rates in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) (countries with more than 2,000 deaths, as of Dec. 1.5, 2020) Cases Deaths per Country (millions) Deaths 100,000 Brazil 6.927 181,835 86.81 Mexico 1.256 114,298 90.58 Argentina 1.503 41,041 92.24 Colombia 1.435 39,195 78.94 Peru 985 36,677 114.65 Chile .574 15,931 85.06 Ecuador .202 13.875 81.21 Bolivia .147 9,024 79.48 Guatemala .129 4,445 25.77 Panama .195 3,382 80.97 Honduras .115 2,989 31.18 Dom. Rep. .155 2,364 22.24 Total LAC 14.103 472,801 - United States 16.519 300,479 91.84 Source: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Coronavirus Resou rce Center, Mortality Analyses, December 1 5, 2020, updated daily, at https://coronavirus.jh u.ed u/data/mortality. The decline in economic growth in 2020 is expected to exacerbate income inequality and poverty throughout the region. Latin America already was the mostunequalregion in the world in terms of income inequality, according to the U.N. Economic CommissionforLatin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). ECLAC projects that in 2020, inequality will rise in all countries, with the worst results in the region's largest economies-Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina. According to a July 2020 U.N. report, poverty is expected to increase from30.3% ofthe region's population \ Q xa S

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