Australia, which isn t providing a full breakdown of its vaccination numbers, is also performing comparatively poorly, as are several other places initially considered standout successes in battling the virus, including Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan.
That could change as vaccination campaigns gather pace and supplies loosen. But meanwhile, previously successful countries are being left exposed to the virus and face longer delays in reopening to the world.
Japan, for instance, has fully vaccinated only about 1% of its population and is facing a significant new outbreak just 10 weeks before it is to host the already delayed Olympic Games although without spectators from abroad.
Dr. Francis Collins reacts to the CDC s overblown coronavirus outdoor transmission rate on The Story
Some wealthy nations that were most praised last year for controlling the coronavirus are now lagging far behind in getting their people vaccinated and some, especially in Asia, are seeing COVID-19 cases grow.
In Japan, South Korea and New Zealand, the vaccination rates are languishing in the single figures. That is in sharp contrast to the U.S., where nearly half of all people have gotten at least one shot, and Britain and Israel, where rates are even higher.
Not only do those three Pacific countries rank worst among all developed nations in vaccinating against COVID-19, they also rank below many developing countries such as Brazil and India, according to national figures and the online scientific publication Our World in Data.
Coronavirus: What s happening in Canada and around the world on Thursday
Some wealthy nations that were most praised last year for controlling the coronavirus are now lagging far behind in getting their people vaccinated and some, especially in Asia, are seeing COVID-19 cases grow.
Social Sharing
The Associated Press ·
Posted: May 13, 2021 8:37 AM ET | Last Updated: May 13
Nurses are seen in April preparing the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 at a vaccination centre in April in Seoul. South Korea, which was widely praised for its handling of the initial outbreaks of COVID-19, is facing mounting pressure to ramp up vaccination efforts.(Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Australia, which isn t providing a full breakdown of its vaccination numbers, is also performing comparatively poorly, as are several other places initially considered standout successes in battling the virus, including Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan.
That could change as vaccination campaigns gather pace and supplies loosen. But meanwhile, previously successful countries are being left exposed to the virus and face longer delays in reopening to the world.
Japan, for instance, has fully vaccinated only about 1% of its population and is facing a significant new outbreak just 10 weeks before it is to host the already delayed Olympic Games although without spectators from abroad.
Australia, which isn t providing a full breakdown of its vaccination numbers, is also performing comparatively poorly, as are several other places initially considered standout successes in battling the virus, including Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan.
That could change as vaccination campaigns gather pace and supplies loosen. But meanwhile, previously successful countries are being left exposed to the virus and face longer delays in reopening to the world.
Japan, for instance, has fully vaccinated only about 1% of its population and is facing a significant new outbreak just 10 weeks before it is to host the already delayed Olympic Games although without spectators from abroad.