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U.S. FDA Authorizes Pfizer BioNTech Vaccine; Interview with BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin; Supreme Court Rejects Trump's Bid to Overturn Election; London May Face Tougher COVID-19 Restrictions; South Korea Reports Highest Ever Rise in Daily Cases; Maskless Partiers Pack Mexican Beach; Argentina's Abortion Bill Heads to Senate; Poverty, Hunger Soar in Venezuela Because of COVID-19. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired December 12, 2020 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST (voice-over): A historic turning point in the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of Americans are one step closer to getting the vaccine.

Donald Trump rails against the Supreme Court after it rejects his bid to overturn the election.

And in Venezuela's slums, forget about COVID. The priority is just not to starve.

Live from CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, welcome to you our viewers here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber and this is CNN NEWSROOM.

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BRUNHUBER: A staggering 3,300 American deaths for COVID-19 were reported on Friday. New cases on Friday hit an all-time high, nearly 232,000 infected Americans.

Well, now there's hope a vaccine could be mere hours away. Late Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration greenlighted the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine for emergency use in the United States.

Next, an advisory panel at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will take a look at it today instead of Sunday, as originally planned. That CDC meeting begins at 11:00 am Eastern.

Once the entire CDC signs off, injections can be administered. CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has been reading through the FDA's written authorization. He explains what's in it and why it's important.

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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the first authorized vaccine for COVID-19 in the United States. A letter, sent to Pfizer tonight, late tonight, from the chief

scientist at the FDA, basically, saying that the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine has met the requirements, has demonstrated that the benefits outweigh the risks and it is an effective and safe vaccine to treat COVID-19, to prevent COVID-19.

There are a few things I want to point out, this is an authorization, not an approval, meaning data will continue to be collected. There is a vaccine adverse event reporting system, where any kind of adverse events that occur over the next few years will continue to be reported.

They have to continue to submit safety data and, also, submit data about the manufacturing of the vaccine. It is one thing to produce a vaccine for tens of thousands of people in a clinical trial. But something else to produce it for hundreds of millions of people.

This is a long deliberation that's going on between the advisory committee and the FDA resulting in this authorization.

There's a few points for consumers that, I think, will be important. One is, for people who have had significant allergic reactions in the past, so significant you carry an EpiPen or something like that, there will be a discussion with your health care provider. But it's likely that this vaccine will not be recommended for you.

For pregnant women, you may remember, pregnant women were not part of the vaccine trial. And there are around 23 women who became pregnant during the trial. So, there is some data there but not very much.

They are basically saying the vaccine could be administered to someone who is pregnant, but after consultation with their health care provider and in acknowledgment that there is not much data there. Really, it's a question there.

If someone is in a high-risk category and a pregnant woman, should they go ahead and get the vaccine?

There was another point about age and, if you remember, this was supposed to be authorized for people 16 and older. There were a few members of the advisory committee who said that should be 18. And the FDA, seems like they're sticking with 16.

What this is -- and it's a huge moment, in this pandemic, it's a huge moment in science, just to have had a vaccine go from a genetic code that is identified to an authorized vaccine, within the year like that. A pretty remarkable achievement.

Now we wait on the CDC to tell us the specific recommendations, the who, what, where, of this whole thing.

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GUPTA: We know it is health care workers and people who live and work in long term care facilities that are most likely to get this vaccine first. As far as who gets it after that, it is something we are waiting to

hear from the CDC. We know they were supposed to meet on Sunday but now, as a result of this authorization, they have moved up that meeting to 11 o'clock East Coast time, in the United States, tomorrow and there should be a vote on the recommendations of this vaccine by midafternoon tomorrow.

So again, FDA authorizes; now the CDC here, in the United States, will recommend to who this vaccine should be given. That process is, likely to start within a few days.

This is not something I, frankly, thought would happen this year. This is a remarkable pace of medical innovation and here in the United States, people should start receiving this vaccine early next week. As we get more details on this -- and they are coming in quickly -- we will bring them to you.

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BRUNHUBER: Experts warn it will be several months before most people will be able to actually get the vaccine. Right now, the pandemic in the U.S. is the worst it's been and threatening to overwhelm the health care system.

U.S. medical facilities are currently treating a record 108,000 COVID- 19 patients. New infections routinely top 200,000 Americans a day. Deaths are averaging more than 2,000 a day. Many communities say they have no choice; they have to reimpose stay-at-home advisories and restrictions.

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM (D-VA): If you don't need to go out, go home. This is just plain common sense. When you're at work, wear a mask. When you're watching your kid play soccer, wear a mask. That's really simple and we can all do that.

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BRUNHUBER: Los Angeles County is recording its highest rate of new infection so far. More than 25,000 cases in just the past two days. That's twice as many new cases as 10 days ago.

Dr. Stephen Parodi is the associate executive director of the Permanente Medical Group and he joins me now.

Thank you for joining us. I want to start with the FDA's emergency use authorization. Across the country, hospitals like yours are preparing for the first rollout.

Tell us, how are you getting ready?

How quickly can people get the shots and who gets them?

DR. STEPHEN PARODI, ASSOCIATE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PERMANENTE MEDICAL GROUP: It's really good to be with you.

And it is actually very welcome news with this emergency use authorization that the FDA has issued tonight. Of course, there are a couple of other steps with our CDC colleagues to finalize that.

But we have been mobilizing and working with our partners, both at the federal and state level, to receive the vaccine. It's been a massive mobilization effort. We have garnered all of our specialists to, of course, review the data ourselves.

We, in fact, participated in the vaccine trial so have confidence in both the safety and efficacy of this vaccine; have been developing the workflows to be able to get that on the ground to the health care workers and the residents of health care facilities that are at risk for complications from COVID.

BRUNHUBER: If the CDC gives its go ahead, when would you start?

Some say it could be as soon as Monday.

PARODI: I think that could be the case. As soon as they pull the trigger, what I understand is that we will be receiving the vaccine within 24 hours of the go-ahead. That could be as early as next week.

We have been mobilizing our teams so that they have both the prioritization, that the CDC has provided to us, as well as having the people trained up and ready to go. In fact, a lot of the protocols that they have in place for the flu vaccine we're going to be able to use with COVID.

BRUNHUBER: The biggest challenges must be staffing up. Many big health care systems like yours across the country are all trying to attract freelance nurses, for example.

How stiff is that competition and how does that affect your ability to staff up when you're already stretched?

PARODI: You're absolutely right. Right now, in California where I'm sitting today, we are taking care of more than 2,000 patients in our hospitals. We also have almost 40 percent of our ICUs with COVID-19 patients.

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PARODI: So, we have had to staff up. We've had to actually mobilize a lot of our guidance around surge that we put together earlier in the year but now are fully implementing. And then on top of that, what we've done is we've repurposed a lot of the staff that works on the outpatient side to be ready to do the COVID-19 vaccine effort.

BRUNHUBER: So, one of the biggest challenges down the road, once the FDA fully approves the vaccine for everyone, is convincing enough Americans to take it. As it stands, only about half of Americans are willing to get the vaccine.

How do you get that number up to where it needs to be?

And what happens if you can't?

PARODI: It is such a great question. "Can't" is not an option. We have to get people mobilized and ready to get the vaccine. We, as the frontline health care workers, are going to be the first ones to demonstrate that we believe in this vaccine. We're willing to get that shot.

And to explain why it's so important that the only way we're going to get over this whole pandemic is to develop herd immunity and that's going to be through this vaccine.

BRUNHUBER: All right. That's all the time we have. Thank you so much, Dr. Stephen Parodi, we appreciate it.

PARODI: Thank you for having me, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: BioNTech's CEO talked exclusively to CNN about the FDA's approval of the vaccine they developed. Fred Pleitgen has that interview for us in Mainz, Germany.

Fred, a great exclusive there.

The CEO must have been thrilled that this hurdle has been overcome.

What did he tell you?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He was thrilled also because he says this was an absolutely herculean effort by himself and by his entire team.

He said, when he first learned about the novel coronavirus in January, he immediately read all the literature out there about the coronavirus. He said he basically did that in just one night and then just studied the virus.

They went 24/7 into researching how they could attack the virus with a vaccine. That cooperation with Pfizer, they started that without even having a written agreement between these two companies because they said it was so important to try and develop a vaccine that is safe as fast as possible. Here is what he said.

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UGUR SAHIN, CEO, BIONTECH: This is a most important milestone. The authorization of our vaccine in the United States was one of the most important milestones from the very beginning.

PLEITGEN: When do you think it will start having an impact on the trajectory, also, of the virus in the United States?

SAHIN: It could happen beginning March, end of March, to see the first effects, I would hope it with the spring season and we would have, by nature, a lower rate of infections and the combination of that may help us to have a better summer than the situation is now.

PLEITGEN: What steps are being taken to really upgrade and speed up production as fast as possible?

SAHIN: We anticipate that the need for each of our vaccine (ph) is much higher than we initially estimated.

Now of course, understanding that more doses may be required, we started a few weeks ago to evaluate if we can produce more doses.

And this, of course, means we need to understand the constraints, for example, the availability of raw materials, the availability of machines, of production rooms and of finished capacity. This is exactly happening.

And I anticipate, at the end of January, we will be able to clearly state if we can produce more of those and if, yes, how many more doses.

PLEITGEN: What do you think our future will be with this virus?

SAHIN: I expect the virus will stay with us and I expect we will require (INAUDIBLE) immunizations. This will become some sort of, I would not say seasonal but maybe every 2 years vaccination, will be required to ensure that people do not get reinfections or infections.

I could even anticipate that this could become a vaccine that is already applied in childhood.

PLEITGEN: You provide Americans with hope that we are turning a page and that we are getting to pushing the pandemic back.

SAHIN: I'm optimistic. Of course, we are now in an extremely difficult situation, not only in the United States but also in Europe.

[04:15:00]

SAHIN: The infection numbers are high and, every day, many people are dying.

What we now know, we have a solution for the problem. And we have to work hard, to make our vaccine and to make other vaccines, available, as soon as possible.

PLEITGEN: It's a real service to humanity, isn't it?

SAHIN: It's indeed a service to humanity and it is in the center of our hearts, that we are able to help people. It is our goal and our vision, to make our vaccine available worldwide, to any region on the planet.

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PLEITGEN: Another thing he said is, of course, right now, there is still a lot of work to be done. They're already working on ways to accelerate production because there's so much demand for this vaccine and other vaccines from around the world.

But they're working on one of the challenges that this vaccine does have, which is the fact that it needs to be stored and transported around minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit. They're working on a formula to transport it at maybe room temperatures possibly by the second half of next year.

BRUNHUBER: Fascinating stuff and a great get, Fred Pleitgen at BioNTech headquarters in Mainz, Germany.

All eyes were obviously on the U.S. Supreme Court Friday as it decided whether it would take up a case that could overturn the presidential election. Just ahead, how its ruling is unleashing the wrath of President Donald Trump. And we'll bring you what he had to say about it. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: President Donald Trump is angry over its refusal of the Supreme Court to take up a lawsuit filed by Texas that sought to block millions of votes in key battleground states.

The court basically said Texas has no standing to tell other states how to run their elections.

Mr. Trump said, quote, "The Supreme Court really let us down. No wisdom, no courage." He sent out several tweets pushing his baseless claims of a rigged election and vowing to fight on. CNN's Jessica Schneider has more on the high court's decision.

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JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The Supreme Court has spoken and it is game over for what was a long shot lawsuit that gained support from more than 100 Republicans in Congress, nearly 2 dozen Republican attorneys general.

The justices on the Supreme Court have spoken for the second time this week, shutting down Republican efforts to stop Joe Biden from becoming president. The Supreme Court putting it this way.

"Texas has no right to even file this lawsuit at the high court because Texas has no right to legally challenge how another state conducts its elections."

In this case, Texas was challenging the election procedures of four battleground states. In this order from the Supreme Court, two of the most conservative justices, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, said they believe the Supreme Court should have at least let Texas file the case.

But then these two justices said, if that had happened, they, too, would have rejected it. So, this is a complete rejection of the Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, his efforts to stop the electors in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia from voting for Joe Biden when they meet on Monday. Now this was a short order, just one page, and just a few sentences in

it. But this is a major defeat for Republicans and it's a victory for all the states and officials who blasted this effort by Texas.

In fact, officials in Pennsylvania calling it, quote, "a cacophony of bogus claims that called for a seditious abuse of the judicial process."

The Supreme Court seem to agree, in a Friday order, that capped off a week of two Supreme Court rejections of Republican efforts. Of course, there have been repeated shutdowns of cases across the country by other state and federal judges. This one, just the latest -- Jessica Schneider, CNN, Washington.

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BRUNHUBER: For more on this, let's bring in Leslie Vinjamuri, the director of the U.S. and Americas Programme at Chatham House in London.

Thank you so much for joining us. Now that the smoke is finally clearing, I vacillate between two extremes, shock and how fragile the electoral system is, how close to the edge we came, and reassured at how robust the system is that, in the end, it passed this extreme stress test.

And it really wasn't all that close after all. They did lose some 50- odd legal challenges.

Where do you stand?

LESLIE VINJAMURI, CHATHAM HOUSE: Well, I think it wasn't all that close. They lost all those legal challenges. They lost the popular vote by 7 million voters approximately and the Electoral College. The margin has not been small in all 50 states.

Nonetheless, the fact that so many Republicans in the House of Representatives really said that they supported the president's effort and the effort behind the Texas lawsuit is all very concerning.

But I think at the end of the story, it's leaning towards, you know, your first claim, which is -- or your second claim, which is, in fact, the system worked. It's been stress tests. What we've seen is that the Supreme Court is truly independent, despite several people's concerns over the past months with the rush to confirm justice Amy Coney Barrett.

Many people thought that signaled the independence of the Supreme Court. But in fact, this is a very clear sign that it has not affected the independence of the Supreme Court.

And regardless of the president's power to appoint and to give those lifetime appointments, it's the lifetime appointment that remains tremendously important in ensuring the independence of that court. [04:25:00]

VINJAMURI: So you know, I think going forward, once President Biden has been installed in office, when that question of the Supreme Court reform comes up, people are going to have to think very, very hard about some proposals, which are going to have term elements on justices. That independence is just tremendously important.

BRUNHUBER: So, the system held but what about society?

Their reaction to all this kind of baffles me. They've been presented with two possibilities, one, there was a massive fraud from both parties across several states with dozens of judges, Democrats and Republicans, supporting this, including the ones the president appointed, that's one.

Or two, Donald Trump lost.

Given that, how governable will this country be?

The Texas Republican Party floated the idea of secession. The president is still exhorting his followers to fight on. So, look into the future here.

VINJAMURI: The broader question of America's democracy, of division among Americans, of polarization, of what information Americans are using to form their views and whether it's fact-based or subject of rhetorical abuse, this is a worrying part of America's history, of our democracy.

And the next president, President Biden, is going to have a challenging country to govern at a time when the effects of the pandemic are so destructive, when the need to get ordinary Americans back to work, means he's going to have to govern in a very divided Congress as well, depending on what happens in those two runoff races in Georgia.

But nonetheless, even if the Democrats were to have control of the Senate, they still face that very divided electorate.

Now the key question here is partly, you know, what do they do to heal the country and to restore those, bridge those divides but it's also what happens when Donald Trump actually leaves the White House?

How much do the Republican -- what happens to the Republican Party?

Do they change their rhetoric or their position?

Do they start to guide their electorates in a more unified direction?

These are questions we can't fully anticipate. But if things remain as they are, we're certainly in trouble in our democracy.

BRUNHUBER: Some 70 percent of Republicans want Trump to run again in 2024. So, we'll see what happens. Listen, my questions were so long, that is all the time we have. Thank you so much for joining us. Leslie Vinjamuri, we appreciate it.

VINJAMURI: Thanks for having me.

BRUNHUBER: Many potential vaccines are in the works all over the world but not all are measuring up. We go live to France, where a vaccine being developed by French and British firms has been pushed back until next year. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to you, our viewers in the United States, Canada and around the world. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

More COVID deaths were reported in the U.S. on Friday than ever before in a single day, more than 3,300 Americans. That is almost 10,000 deaths in just the past three days.

And there were more new U.S. cases than ever on Friday, almost 232,000. It's putting a huge strain on hospitals which already are struggling with record numbers of COVID patients.

Now the first vaccinations are on the verge of becoming reality in the U.S. The Food and Drug Administration late Friday gave emergency use authorization to the vaccine by Pfizer and BioNTech. Injections can begin as soon as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gives its OK. And that could happen later today.

Europe is also moving forward with its preparations for a vaccine, but some major developers are running into problems. CNN's Jim Bittermann is near Paris tracking those developments.

On a day of excitement in the U.S., there was disappointment elsewhere. Walk us through what happened.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kind of disappointing news for GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi. That were jointly developing a vaccine that apparently is not efficient enough for seniors. It works fairly well for younger people, but older populations are not going to be as protected against the coronavirus. So, they are not expecting to have a vaccine until the third quarter of 2021.

Another bit of disappointing news came a couple of days ago. That is that the European Drug Agency, that is in charge of authorizing drug use and medication use throughout Europe, say they're not going to get around to looking at the Pfizer vaccine until the 29th of December. They're not going to issue an order about its authorization and January 12th with the Moderna vaccine. So probably the first vaccine in Europe are going to be much slower than what you're seeing in Britain and the United States. Probably the first vaccine in France may be a million doses, probably Pfizer, will be rolling out in January and those will go to medical professionals and seniors in health care homes.

Other seniors won't get them until February and the rest of the population in the spring. So, a slower rollout compared to what you're seeing elsewhere.

BRUNHUBER: CNN's Jim Bittermann, appreciate it.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases is surging in many European countries. France is delaying lifting its restrictions as cases are still high and German lawmakers are expected to meet in the coming days to tighten their own lockdown measures.

In England, there's worry London might have to enter a strict tier 3 level lockdowns next week.

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BRUNHUBER: The British capital is seeing a rise in infections, especially among school children. So, the government says it plans to start mass testing 11 to 18-year-olds. CNN's Anna Stewart is in London for us.

Good news for those in London. But people in other areas are asking, what about our kids?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So mobile testing units will be sent to secondary schools in the most affected areas in London, Essex and Kent. Students won't have to take a test but they're being encouraged to do so.

This is part of the government making a targeted response to what they're seeing in terms of COVID cases. They say 11 to 18-year-olds in certain areas are accounting for most of the cases.

And you are absolutely right, not everyone is happy about this, particularly where COVID cases have been very high. They're in a much stricter set of restrictions and haven't been offered this mass testing for schools.

On social media, some teachers have come out and said some of their students have spent more time at home self-isolating just because they came in contact with someone and couldn't get a test.

Meanwhile, it doesn't look good for England, barely -- less than two weeks since our national lockdown ended. The infection rate does appear to be on the rise once again. But it's in London where the trajectory is particularly worrying at the moment.

And all eyes are on Christmas for England, particularly as three households can mix over a few days for Christmas. But that is not a good idea, really, if the virus is on the rise.

BRUNHUBER: Thank you so much, Anna Stewart in London. South Korea has just seen its single highest day jump in coronavirus

cases. The latest from Seoul, just ahead.

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BRUNHUBER: South Korea which controlled its initial coronavirus outbreak, is now facing a resurgence. They've reported their highest daily rise in cases since the pandemic began and now it's turning shipping containers into medical facilities. CNN's Paula Hancocks is in the capital of Seoul for us.

Quite a disappointing reversal.

What is behind the surge and how is the government planning on handling it?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We heard from President Moon Jae- in, saying he believes this is an emergency situation. There will be more done with tracing, testing and treatment.

What we've heard from his prime minister is there will be 150 new testing stations set up in and around the greater Seoul area. And hundreds of military personnel, of police are being brought in and trained to help with the contact tracing process.

It's not an outbreak or a cluster, based on one or two epicenters. There are much smaller outbreaks, but they are more widespread; 90 in one religious facility in Seoul, 66 in a nursing hospital, 14 in a restaurant.

So, the fact that we are seeing so many smaller outbreaks is making it far harder for officials to try and contain the outbreak. The prime minister himself did say if these numbers continue in an upward trend, then there will be no choice but to increase restrictions once again, increase the social distancing measures. And that would be to the highest level that it can be here in South Korea.

BRUNHUBER: Thank you so much, Paula Hancocks in Seoul, thank you.

Mexico has the fourth highest total of COVID-19 deaths worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University. It's also one of world's top vacation destinations and some of those holidaymakers have been partying like it's 2019. CNN's Matt Rivers reports.

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MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is tourist hot spot Tulum, Mexico, this year, in mid-November.

The dance party with the pre-pandemic vibe, was part of a five-day festival called Art with Me.

This attendee says, "At that moment, when you're in the party, you are not thinking about getting sick."

As "The Daily Beast" first reported, hundreds attended from multiple countries, including the U.S., despite the organizer's website describing COVID protocols that would be followed, masks, hand washing, social distance, CNN found lots of videos online, showing, well, not that.

Organizers said the event was designed to celebrate culture of all forms but, for many, just not the mask-wearing kind.

She says, "There's those who don't want to leave home and not live and then there are others that go out, live life and put COVID aside. We are that kind of people."

RIVERS: Some people who attended this party could have put others at risk. Some came down here to Mexico and could have put Mexican lives in danger, because they did not follow safety protocols. And some, because what happens here doesn't stay here, could have spread the virus when they went back home.

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DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: I see each of these events as potential superspreader events because if even one person at that event has coronavirus, they could spread it to dozens of other people.

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RIVERS (voice-over): The government of Tulum says they are looking into whether local regulations were broken but says these events were not illegal. Organizers had said they would require attendees to wear masks and social distance. Many people just did not comply.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It puts human lives at risk, but it also puts our image as a tourism destination at risk.

[04:45:00]

RIVERS (voice-over): The organizers are apologizing; in a statement to CNN, Art with Me said they worked to implement strict health measures, quote, "We stand behind our protocols.

However, in the end, we regret not canceling the event entirely. We apologize for any strain this may have caused our already overtaxed health system and frontline workers and we hope others might learn from our experience."

Another event, the dance music celebrating Zamna festival will kick off on New Year's Eve. Their website says COVID-19 protocols will be strictly followed. But the mayor says, the event will not be held unless current COVID restrictions are relaxed. The festival's opening party, already sold out.

RIVERS: An argument you hear a lot, including from some who went to this festival, is that if tourists don't show, up locals don't eat and it's true, tourism is Tulum's lifeblood. But in reality, it's a weak justification. There is traveling to support local economies, while being as safe as possible and actually considering the risk you might pose to others. And then, there is this -- Matt Rivers, CNN, Mexico City.

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BRUNHUBER: Coming up next, the biggest fear for many in Venezuela right now isn't COVID-19; it's hunger. We'll take you inside some of the most impoverished neighborhoods to find out why. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: At least one person is dead, and two others are wounded after 10 rockets were fired from a vehicle in Kabul, Afghanistan. And the airport temporarily shut down after a rocket landed near a plane. Aviation officials say the aircraft wasn't damaged. The other rockets all landed in different parts of the city. No one has claimed responsibility.

Argentina's landmark abortion bill now heads to the senate after being approved by the lower house. Coming up here, while you're looking at video of the vote and some of the reaction to the outcome, the measure would legalize abortion in Argentina in all cases up to 14 weeks. Apparently, it's only legal in cases of rape or if the woman's life is in danger.

To Venezuela now, where the coronavirus pandemic has hit the country's economy hard, even though the country has the world's largest proven oil reserves. Residents of the poorest neighborhoods there are barely scraping by and at this point people are more afraid of hunger than of COVID-19. Isa Soares reports from Caracas.

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ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Life has come to a standstill for many on the streets of Caracas, Venezuela, after decades of corruption, economic pain and violence, the pandemic is now robbing many here of even a minimal income. Intensifying one of Venezuela's most pronounced ailments, extreme hunger.

Celestina Rondon (ph) tells me she lost both her boys to gun violence 16 years ago, shot just a few streets away from her home.

"There was so much war, they killed without mercy," she says. Today, she's fighting a different battle: trying to make her $1

pension amid hyperinflation last the month.

"I eat bologna, rice and sausages, if there's any," she says.

Today there isn't much.

She has, what, three sausages, a tiny bit of rice up here, frozen water. And then if I open here, she's got plantain and leftovers that are now swarming with flies.

Water, too, is in short supply here, a result of Venezuela's deteriorating infrastructure after decades of mismanagement under President Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro.

The little that does flow out, she uses to fill these up. Avoiding COVID-19 is the last thing on her mind.

"When there's water, we store it so it lasts. And when there's money, we buy bottled water," she says.

Down the road, I meet an 80-year old, Francesca de Sapia (ph), who, behind her smile, hides a world of pain. She tells me she has no fridge, broken as a result of blackouts that have plagued the country more frequently over the last few years.

She shares this house with her two sons and, here, resignation adorns its every corner. A report last year found that 96 percent of Venezuelans are living in poverty. Nowhere is that more evident than Petare, Venezuela's biggest slum.

Here, children quietly line up for their only meal of the day. Run by NGO Alimenta Petare, this soup kitchen alone feeds 80 children. Volunteer Yulissa Rodriguez (ph), a mother herself, can't quite believe how bad it has gotten.

"We have lots of vulnerable families," she says, "many of whom don't even have breakfast."

With hunger, comes malnutrition and, in Venezuela, there are 639,000 malnourished children under 5 years of age, according to a national survey.

So it's no surprise that this NGO worker, who prefers to remain anonymous for fear of government reprisals, has so many knocking on her door.

"We were feeding 14,000 children and now, since the pandemic," she says, "we have 25,000 children."

Prominent Venezuelan nutritionist and activist Susana Raffalli says what Venezuela is witnessing is a crisis of great proportions.

SOARES: Do you think Venezuela will end up having a lost generation or even two lost generations here? SUSANA RAFFALLI, NUTRITIONIST AND ACTIVIST (through translator): I wish I didn't have to say this but we're looking at two lost generations. We have seen an exponential rise in prostitution, of transactional sex for food. We have seen exponential rise in child labor, in exchange for food.

SOARES (voice-over): Back at the slums, I feel this weight being carried with all I speak to, including this health care worker, who now also has to worry about water.

[04:55:00]

SOARES (voice-over): "Everything is bad," she says. "I have my mom bedridden and I have to have water."

Exhausted, she's struggling to make ends meet, amid a backdrop of hyperinflation, where even her job has lost its value.

SOARES: How much do you earn a month?

"Two dollars."

Her mother, who she looks after, her pension is $1.

So this family right here, $3 per month.

Overburdened with life, I ask her if it's all taking a toll.

"Everything we're living through is so tough," she says, "it makes me not want to live at all."

Heartbreaking words that will no doubt resonate with many here, a country where poverty and hunger are now eating away at Venezuela's soul -- Isa Soares, CNN, Caracas, Venezuela.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber and I'll be back in just a moment. Stay with us.