Mexican President says "he will not take the vaccine"

In a reversal of comments made last week, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Monday that he would not take the coronavirus vaccine, arguing that he still had adequate levels of antibodies in his system following his battle with the virus earlier this year.

Lopez Obrador said during his daily news conference that the test results show that it is not necessary to take the vaccine.

On Wednesday, however, Lopez Obrador announced that he would receive the COVID-19 vaccine next week, as a precaution, based on his doctor's advice. He said he would not let the media know at which vaccination site he would receive it, and said he did not want to make a 'spectacle' of it.

Lopez Obrador has been criticized for mishandling the pandemic and despising the threats of the disease. Even after contracting the virus, he was often seen in public without a mask.

Mexico was one of the worst-hit countries in the region. According to Johns Hopkins University, more than 204,000 Mexicans have died from the disease, the third-highest in the world. Recently, the government said that the number is probably much higher.

Mexico, a country of 126 million, launched its vaccination campaign in December, but the effort was thwarted by delayed shipments and high demand for doses. The country has meanwhile obtained vaccines from several countries, including the United States, India, Russia and China. The U.S. recently "borrowed" 2.7 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Mexico, which increased supply.

Mexico is currently vaccinating its elderly population on sites being erected throughout the country. Lopez Obrador has aimed for most senior citizens to get at least one shot by the end of April.

According to Our World in Data, 6 percent of the population has been vaccinated so far and is behind Brazil and Chile.