U.S. CDC Grants $3 Milion to Mexico’s Coronavirus Efforts

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) granted Mexico $3 million to help with the impacts of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), carry out research, and help migrants along the border. The money comes at a time when Mexico surpassed 51,000 coronavirus-related deaths and climbed to number three on the list of nations with the most fatalities.

Mexico’s Undersecretary of Health, Hugo Lopez Gatell announced the U.S. donation on Friday evening after his nightly news conference. During the conference, he also revealed the daily number of cases and fatalities.

According to Lopez Gatell, the money from the CDC is destined to help Mexico in dealing with the pandemic. The funds will also help Mexico carry out seroprevalence research and assist the migrant population along the border.

The most recent statistics released by Lopez Gatell point to 469,497 confirmed cases nationwide, 51,311 fatalities, and 89,155 cases still undergoing testing to either confirm or disprove infections.

The most current statistics place Mexico as the nation with the third-most fatalities — just behind the U.S. and Brazil. Mexico is currently number six in the top 10 nations with the most cases of COVID-19.

Despite the alarming figures, the true scope of the pandemic actually could be much higher. Lopez Gatell and his staff received harsh criticism for not doing enough tests in comparison to other nations. Mexico, which has an approximate population of 129 million, has only conducted 1,071,706 tests since the pandemic began.  That figure places Mexico at 150 in terms of tests per 1 million in population as compared to the rest of the world.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.