Latin America has seen an alarming spike in cases and deaths even as the tide of infection recedes in Europe and parts of Asia. The number of infections, at 2.2 million, has doubled in less than a month.
Brazil - Latin America's largest and most populous nation - this week became only the second country to reach the 50,000 deaths milestone, after the United States. Mexico on Tuesday registered a fresh one-day record for confirmed infections.
The true scale of the coronavirus damage to Latin America is likely to be much deeper, experts say, as countries across the region have failed to implement rigorous testing programmes. Many officials concede the death toll is likely far higher.
Hugo Lopez-Gatell, Mexico's deputy health minister and the country's coronavirus tsar, on Tuesday signaled that his nation is in for a long battle against coronavirus.
"We must learn to live with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and permanently incorporate hygiene and prevention practices into the new reality," said Lopez-Gatell, urging the Mexican society to adapt its response to the threat.
On top of creaking healthcare systems in many countries across the region, Latin America's battle against the virus has been hamstrung by widespread poverty and many workers living a hand-to-mouth existence in the informal sector that has hindered quarantine efforts.
Brazil registered an additional 1,374 deaths on Tuesday from the virus and 39,436 new cases, pushing the death toll from the novel coronavirus to 52,000 people in Latin America's biggest economy. More than 1.1 million have been infected.
Mexico, the worst hit-nation in the region after Brazil in terms of overall figures, on Tuesday registered 6,288 new infections and 793 additional deaths. That brought the totals for the country to 191,410 cases and 23,377 deaths.
The virus also appears to be on the rise in Central America, where Guatemala on Tuesday recorded more than 700 new infections for the first time. An additional 35 deaths were registered in Guatemala, taking it deaths total to 582.
