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May 11, 2021

World Health Organization Chief Blasts "Shocking Global Disparity" in Vaccine Access
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In the Czech Republic, mourners lit nearly 30,000 candles Monday at
Prague Castle to commemorate the number of victims who've fallen to
COVID-19. The Czech Republic has the second-highest per capita death
toll in the world from COVID, after Hungary.

Worldwide, cases have edged down from record highs set in April but
remain at a dangerous, high plateau. Case rates are highest in countries
with low vaccination rates. In Geneva, World Health Organization
Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called Monday on wealthy
nations to stop hoarding vaccine doses at the expense of poorer
countries.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: "The shocking global disparity in access to
vaccines remains one of the biggest risks to ending the pandemic. High-
and upper-income countries represent 53% of the world's population but
have received 83% of the world's vaccines. By contrast, low- and
lower-middle-income countries account for 47% of the world's population
but have received just 17% of the world's vaccines."



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