The Brazilian government has come under fire for handling the crisis. Last week, High Court Judge Ricardo Lewandowski ordered the government to submit a response plan to resolve the oxygen shortage, citing the “misguided behavior” of Jair Bolsonaro’s government to address the state of emergency.
It also highlights that the local government in Amazonas has not informed federal authorities about the looming oxygen shortage. “The Ministry of Health … was notified of this on January 8 by means of an email sent by the product manufacturer,” the report reads. The supplier, called White Martins in the report, first notified the Amazon government and then federal authorities, the report said.
It is not clear why the federal government allegedly notified oxygen contractors to a private contractor. According to the Attorney General’s report, the health department in Manaus was aware that the city’s health system had been on the verge of collapsing since early January.
Manaus City officials did not respond to a request for comment from CNN.
A spokesman for the Amazonas state government told CNN that they would provide ‘explanations’ to the prosecutor general’s office, adding that the state was still working to ease the crisis, including transporting oxygen from other states. to Manaus, the installation of mini oxygen in hospitals, the transfer of patients for assistance in other states and the acquisition of all production from local oxygen suppliers. ‘
But the Attorney General’s report raises questions as to why the Federal Ministry of Health could not help prevent the collapse of Manaus’ healthcare system, after receiving prior notice. Ministry officials traveled to Manaus in early January and Pazuello personally visited the city from January 11 to January 13.
The disaster hit the city’s hospitals the next day. On January 14, Amazon state officials announced that Manaus hospitals and emergency rooms were facing crippling oxygen deficiencies, amid rising Covid-19 cases. “We have a lot of trouble getting medical supplies. And since everyone is following it, our biggest problem right now was oxygen,” Governor Wilson Lima told reporters.
Although the Brazilian air force responded by delivering emergency supplies of liquid and gaseous oxygen, the shortages continued. Logistical problems exacerbated the crisis, as Manaus’ supplies entered the city mainly via the Amazon River. There is only one highway out of the city, which connects it to the neighboring state of Amapá.
Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello defended his agency’s response. “We have taken immediate action,” he told a news conference in Brasilia on Monday. “There was no indication of a lack of oxygen during our meetings in early January. The turnout was very rapid,” he said.
“When we [visited Manaus] on [January] 4, the problem was not oxygen. The problem was the bed structure, the number of Covid-19 patients, the queues, “Pazuello also said.
Bolsonaro’s appointment of Pazuello, a former military commander, to head the Ministry of Health has been strongly criticized by the opposition, as the Covid-19 death toll in Brazil is the second highest in the world, just behind the United States.
Bolsonaro himself has denied any responsibility for the city’s deadly crisis. “There’s a problem in Manaus … We deplore the deaths due to suffocation, due to lack of oxygen, and people are blaming the government. We have allocated billions to the states, but those responsible for the lack of medication are the state and municipal health secretaries, ”he told supporters on Monday.
His statement follows the demand by Vice President Hamilton Mourão last week that no one should be able to collapse the city’s health system.
“You can not predict what will happen to this (virus) strain that occurs in Manaus. Quite different from what happened in the first half,” Mourão said.