Worsening the situation, are the country’s extreme socioeconomic disparities, which threaten the survival of vulnerable communities.

As South Africa enters the influenza season, that combined with the high HIV and TB burden could spell disaster in terms of Covid-19 severity and deaths, eight leading scientists are warning.

Writing in the latest SA Medical Journal (SAMJ), they said it was crucial to employ surveillance strategies to evaluate the possible shared risks for both Covid-19 and the winter influenza, cautioning that co-infections would cause a spike in disease.

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