Rising Malaria Cases and Deaths in 2020 Attributed to Pandemic Disruptions

Malaria cases rose in 2020, as did death from the disease--by 12%. What caused this? Transcript This week, the WHO published its annual World Malaria Report, and the headline figures are stark. There were an estimated 241 million cases of malaria in 2020, up 14 million from the year before. 627,000 of these cases resulted in death, up 12% from the year before. This uptick in death is attributed largely to COVID, with less access to controls and prevention, like bed nets, indoor residual spraying and preventative drug treatment. In the early stages of the pandemic, the WHO warned of a 'worst case scenario' for malaria in which deaths could double due to service disruption. Yet, the collaborative effort of countries and partners averted this situation and minimised the disruption. Since 2000, global efforts have reduced malaria death rates by half and saved 10.6 million lives. Source World malaria report 2021 About The Podcast The Johns Hopkins Malaria Minute podcast is produced by the Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute to highlight impactful malaria research and share with the global community.