Brazil confirms 600,000 deaths related to COVID-19

Brasilia: Brazil on Friday became the second country in the world to exceed 600,000 deaths from COVID-19, a dark step for a government that has come under heavy criticism for mismanaging the epidemic.

President Jair Bolsonaro has drawn anger from health experts for his inability to implement measures to contain the pandemic. He has spoken out against blockades, expressed scepticism of vaccines and regularly refuses to wear a mask in public. But despite Friday's tragic mark, there are now signs that infections in Brazil are finally declining, as the country ramps up vaccinations after a slow start. More than 70% of Brazilians received a first dose, compared to 65% in the United States, which exceeded 600,000 deaths in June. "The vaccine rejection rate is meager, it makes other countries jealous," said Alexandre Naime Barbosa, head of epidemiology at Sao Paulo State University. "It's really important for Brazil to contain the pandemic."

Brazil also appears to have been spared the worst of the Delta variant so far, with deaths and recorded cases declining despite the arrival of the most contagious strain.

Deaths are down 80% from their peak of more than 3,000 a day in April, and Brazil no longer has one of the highest daily death rates in the world. The health ministry recorded 615 new deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the total to 600,425 since the start of the pandemic.

Health experts believe that the first devastating effects in Brazil of the Gamma variant, also known as the P1, may have tempered the evolution of the Delta variant, causing a significant increase in cases elsewhere.

“The enormous cost of living we had with Gamma resulted in partial immunity of part of the population when Delta spread,” said virologist Fernando Spilki of Feevale University in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.