From hero to zero: Uruguay's coronavirus boomerangThe Uruguayan government is placing its hopes for beating a world-record coronavirus infection rate on its vaccine campaignMONTEVIDEO - Battling the world's highest coronavirus infection rate as ambulances queue to deposit patients at hospitals bulging at the seams, Uruguay has gone from a shining example of Covid-19 control to a nation in pandemic crisis. Seventy-three percent of ICU beds are now occupied -- more than half of them by coronavirus patients -- and doctors complain of exhaustion. And GUIAD, a grouping of scientists keeping track of coronavirus data, said Monday that "only strict measures" will curb the infection rate. These suggestions have been rejected by the government, which is putting all its hope on Uruguay's vaccination campaign. "No country in the world, less so on the continent, can bend the infection curve without strict restrictive measures.

Source: Bangkok Post April 16, 2021 19:07 UTC