As countries in the Caribbean confront varying degrees of pushback from recalcitrant pockets of population over adherence to strictures believed to be important in minimising the impact of COVID-19, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is warning that countries which fail to enforce strictures effectively could possibly face an acceleration of the pandemic as well as the advent of new strains of the virus.
And PAHO Director, Dr Carissa Etienne, is urging political leaders in the hemisphere to act transparently in 2021, a year in which she said they “will face difficult choices as we work to flatten the transmission curve.” It is important, the PAHO Director says, that the public understands the decisions made by political leaders “and the scientific evidence that is behind those decisions, so we can rally people around a shared plan.”