PAHO does not recommend the generalized reopening of classes in Mexico

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The reopening of schools in Mexico cannot be carried out in a generalized way, since it must be based on a local risk assessment, the Pan American Health Organization warned.

When questioned about the face-to-face return to classes that the country has planned for next August 30, in a virtual press conference, Ciro Ugarte, Director of Health Emergencies at PAHO, pointed out that the process of reopening the health centers The face-to-face study should be based -among other factors- on the analysis of the intensity of the transmission in the place where the schools are intended to be opened.

Ciro Ugarte added that it is very important to implement efficient mechanisms for the immediate notification of infections that may appear in schools that reopen in the country. 

He argued that although Mexico is making progress in vaccination against coronavirus, it still does not have the protection required to reduce transmission.

More than two thirds of the country’s states have a high risk of contagion

Carissa F. Etienne, Director of PAHO, pointed out that more than two-thirds of the entities in Mexico have a high risk of infection from the SARS-CoV-2 virus and consequently the hospitalization capacity is decreasing.

“Epidemiological surveillance and rapid diagnosis are required in order to take timely measures to reduce transmission if it appears”, Carissa F. Etienne concluded.