MEXICO CITY (CN) — As the United States finally begins to see the possible peak of the devastating Covid-19 delta wave, Mexico’s numbers started their descent in mid-August — despite a slightly higher percentage of the U.S. population being fully vaccinated.
What did Mexico do differently to more effectively mitigate the spread of the deadly virus?
Blaine Doyle, CEO of the Mexico City-based infectious disease lab ChektAhora, attributed the decline to widespread acceptance of vaccines and strict adherence to mitigation measures, especially mask wearing. An SOSV portfolio company, ChektAhora provides in-home Covid testing and will soon offer a similar vaccination product.
"Definitely the vaccine has been helping,” he said, adding that mistrust of the vaccine “has been a big reason that Covid has lingered in other countries longer than it should have. The vaccine has been hugely beneficial for lowering the case rates here and definitely opening up the country, allowing business to resume somewhat back to normal.”
Originally from Ireland, Doyle recently traveled to both Europe and the United States and noticed the stark difference in attitudes toward epidemiological realities. And vaccines aren't the only reason he believes Mexico has seen declining Covid numbers.
“Mexico is a global standard-bearer in the intensity of mask use,” he said. “From the moment people leave their front doors, the mask is on, whereas in other countries, it’s kind of pick-and-choose as to when and where they use them.”
Eddie Mendoza has moved nearly 5 million doses of U.S.-manufactured Covid-19 vaccines to Mexico as director of Direct Relief Mexico, a nonprofit that provides medical supplies to disaster victims and people affected by poverty across the globe. Having also compared the situations in Mexico and his home country the United States, Mendoza has noticed this difference in attitudes toward the science as well.
“Everybody [in Mexico] seems to be in line with the use of masks, which is interesting compared to the United States,” he said. He also noted the lack of resistance to vaccines and mask mandates in the government here, such as the nationwide mask mandate for schools, which reopened in late August. “In the levels of government that I’ve interacted with, everybody is pretty much on board with following the science.”
While the Mexican government by no means enjoys the complete trust and approval of its citizenry, belief in the science behind vaccines and the efficacy of personal protective equipment does appear to extend to the vast majority of the Mexican population.
This trust in science also — in stark contrast to Mexico’s neighbor to the north — does not fall along political lines. Similar to the United States, Mexico’s population is deeply divided between supporters of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s ostensibly liberal Morena party and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and other conservative affiliations. But even these deep divisions haven’t affected people’s decisions to get vaccinated.
Denise Kuri Asali, 56, is a graphic designer and vociferous opponent to the current presidential administration. “I have nothing good to say about López Obrador, but the vaccine has nothing to do with him,” she said. She became fully vaccinated in late June.
“I’m a responsible person who feels that this isn’t a personal decision. We have to think about the rest of the world, not just ourselves. Politics is one thing, the pandemic is another.”
Abraham Romo, a 30-year-old industrial designer in an untucked sky blue button-down shirt, tight man-bun and sunglasses one would expect on someone who designs for the runway, waited for an acquaintance outside the vaccination center at Mexico City's University Olympic Stadium. Having received the vaccine the day before, he said, “It’s a question of health. It has nothing to do with politics.”
Arturo Hernández and his wife and grandson also awaited an acquaintance in the sprawling parking lot filled with people of all ages. The 52-year-old gas station attendant similarly said that politics did not play a role in his decision to vaccinate himself or his eligible family members.
“The vaccine gives you a sense of trust,” he said. “Maybe up there [in the United States] they don’t have this trust that the vaccine is going to work well for them. Here, people trust the vaccine.”
He and his wife said that they knew several people with doubts about the vaccine, but after witnessing the devastation of the pandemic firsthand, people quickly changed their minds.
“The thing is, we’ve seen a lot of deaths. That’s how it is. People who didn’t want to get vaccinated, once they see one of their family members die [of Covid], then they decide to get the vaccine.”
Mendoza of Direct Relief said that while he has seen the efficacy of vaccines, he also appreciates the Mexican people’s strict adherence to mask wearing and other mitigation measures even in situations where he considers the vaccine to be sufficient. He thanks these attitudes for the current positive outlook on where Mexico is headed at this point in the pandemic.
“If you start looking at all the nuance, it gets challenging to make any actual rules, so I appreciate the lack of nuance,” he said. “Eventually we’re going to get to where we’re just not going to wear masks. We’re not there yet. We’re pretty close though.”
Courthouse News correspondent Cody Copeland is based in Mexico City. Follow him on Twitter.
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