Журнал инфекционных заболеваний и патологии

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Covid-19 pandemic: a call to action

António Ferreira

The Covid-19 pandemic is having a dramatic impact on the world’s population. Currently, there are more than half a million new cases per day and there are more than 10,000 daily deaths [1]. The effects of this pandemic far outweigh the direct consequences of the disease. In several industrialized countries there is an excess of all-cause mortality, not only due to deaths due to COVID-19, but due to an excess of mortality due to other causes. The lock-down of health systems, focused on patient care in Covid-19, seems to be the most plausible explanation for the non-CoVID-19 excess of mortality [2]. On the other hand, the measures adopted by governments to combat the pandemic have led to the shutdown of society and the economy, leading to brutal falls in GDP [3]. The effects of this economic crisis affect all social groups but are more intense among the poorest and disadvantaged.