Younger Brazilians increasingly hit by Covid-19, study finds

Younger Brazilians are increasingly being affected by Covid-19, with those in their 20s showing the greatest increase in deaths so far this year, according to a report published by government biomedical institute Fiocruz on Friday. It found that the number of COVID-19 deaths among people between the ages of 20 and 29 jumped more than 1,000% between the start of this year and the first half of April. Deaths among those 30 to 39 rose 819%, while fatalities among the 40 to 49-year-old group jumped 933%, the study found. Brazil has been badly hit by the pandemic this year, with a slow vaccine rollout, patchy nationwide restrictions and a highly contagious new virus variant known as the P1 driving new infections.