Canada Surpasses U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Rates

COVID-19 vaccination rates in Canada have now beaten those in the United States.

As of Saturday, more than 49 percent of eligible people in Canada were fully vaccinated and 70 percent had received at least one dose of vaccine, according to figures from the Our World in Data project, The New York Times reported. The corresponding rates in the United States are about 48 and 55.5 percent. In the European Union, less than 43 percent are fully vaccinated and 55.7 percent have had at least one shot.

Globally, wealthy nations are far outpacing the rest of the world. Only about 1 percent of people in low-income countries are even partly vaccinated, The Times reported.

The pace of U.S. vaccinations has remained relatively flat in recent weeks. In a renewed push, President Joe Biden last week asked employers to set up clinics at work and to offer paid time off for workers to get vaccines. After a sharp drop in virus cases, the highly contagious Delta variant is now fueling infections among the unvaccinated. Outbreaks have emerged in some parts of Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri.

Canada's vaccination rate has now accelerated after supply issues slowed the country's early rollout, The Times reported. Experts said that Canada's start was always going to be sluggish because of several key factors, notably its decision last year to spread its 414 million orders among seven different companies to reduce risk, rather than bet on a single vaccine in exchange for early delivery.

Meanwhile, across the pond, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will spend 10 days self-isolating after contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case. Johnson already had a serious bout of COVID-19 early in the pandemic: In April 2020, he spent three nights in an intensive care unit fighting off the virus.