Brazil’s ‘failed’ response to Covid-19 has driven the country to a ‘humanitarian catastrophe’, Doctors Without Borders said on Thursday, accusing President Jair Bolsonaro’s government of exacerbating the health crisis.
“The lack of political will to respond adequately to the pandemic is killing thousands of Brazilians,” the humanitarian group said in a statement.
The statement highlighted the deadly rise of Covid-19 that made Brazil the current epicenter of the pandemic.
Brazil’s ‘failed’ response to Covid-19 has driven the country to a ‘humanitarian catastrophe’, Doctors Without Borders said on Thursday (in the photo, cemetery workers under the coffin of a Covid-19 victim)
The humanitarian organization blamed President Bolsonaro for not responding adequately to the virus, which he described as a ‘little flu’.
In all, the disease claimed more than 385,000 lives in Brazil, second only to the United States
Last week, the country with 212 million people accounted for 11 percent of infections and 26.2 percent of deaths due to Covid-19 worldwide, Doctors Without Borders said.
Last week, the country with 212 million people accounted for 11 percent of infections and 26.2 percent of deaths due to Covid-19 worldwide, the group said.
In all, the disease claimed more than 385,000 lives in Brazil, second only to the United States.
“These staggering figures are clear evidence of the failure of the authorities to manage the health and humanitarian crises in the country and to protect Brazilians, especially the most vulnerable,” he said.
Bolsonaro has long underestimated the pandemic and challenged expert advice on measures to curb it, and the state and local authorities are allowing a messy patchwork of response measures.
Last week, the country with 212 million people accounted for 11 percent of infections and 26.2 percent of deaths due to Covid-19 worldwide, the group said.
Bolsonaro has long underestimated the pandemic and challenged expert advice on measures to curb it, leaving the state and local authorities to put in place a messy patchwork of response measures.
Bolsonaro has long underestimated the pandemic and challenged expert advice on measures to curb it, leaving the state and local authorities to put in place a messy patchwork of response measures.
Médecins Sans Frontières said the lack of an ‘effective, centralized and coordinated’ response exacerbated the crisis.
“Public health measures have become a political battleground in Brazil,” said Christos Christou, president of the group, sometimes referred to by his French acronym MSF.
“As a result, scientific policies are associated with political opinions, rather than the need to protect individuals and their communities.”
The statement comes two days after the Brazilian Senate launched a commission of inquiry into the handling of the Bolsonaro pandemic.
Médecins Sans Frontières condemns the lack of masks and social distance in Brazil, which has been ‘avoided and politicized’, even though Bolsonaro and his allies are taking drugs such as anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, despite studies showing their ineffectiveness towards Covid-19.
“The fuel of illness and death in Brazil is the overwhelming amount of disinformation,” he said. It also condemns the country’s ‘half-speed’ vaccination campaign.
The organization, which has been operating in Brazil since 1991, has deployed medical teams in eight of Brazil’s 27 countries to respond to the pandemic.
The outbreak is breaking hospitals until many patients die before a bed for intensive care units is available.
ICU capacity currently stands at about 80 percent in all 27 regions of Brazil.
In addition, more than 50 percent of intensive care beds are currently occupied by patients under the age of 40, according to a study published over the weekend by the Brazilian Association of Intensive Medicine.
The outbreak is pushing hospitals to a breaking point, and many patients die before a bed for Intensive Care Units becomes available (photo, a field hospital in Santo Andre)
According to a study published by the Brazilian Association of Intensive Medicine, more than 50 percent of intensive care units are currently occupied by patients under 40 years of age.
It is not clear why more young people become seriously ill during the current wave of the virus in Brazil, but some scientists believe that the new P1 variant may be at least partially to blame (pictured, newly dug graves at a cemetery in Brasilia, Brazil))
The new statistic is a jump of 16.5 percent compared to the occupation of that age group between December and February. The report is based on data from more than a third of all the country’s intensive care units.
It is not clear why more young people become seriously ill during the current outbreak of the virus in Brazil, but some scientists believe the new P1 variant that originated in the Amazon city of Manaus could be at least partially blamed.
Other factors, such as the behavior of younger people who feel less concerned about going out and hanging out, and the vaccination of the elderly, may also affect the data.
However, the vaccination program in Brazil was painfully slow and only an estimated 3 percent of the population, about 6.3 million people, were both affected.
A further 21.1 million, according to the Ministry of Health, received one vaccine. But at least 1.5 million of them are behind the plan for their second push and there was no explanation for the government delay.
Bolsonaro has been widely criticized for his approach to the coronavirus, which he described as a ‘little flu’.
He has repeatedly ignored the calls of health experts to wear masks and opposed the use of lock-up measures.
An inquiry into the government’s pandemic response was launched on Tuesday after a Supreme Court judge ruled last week that enough senators supported the inquiry.
The congressional inquiry, known under the Portuguese acronym CPI, could lead to a number of actions, including referring potential violations to law enforcement.
An investigation into the Bolsonaro pandemic response was launched on Tuesday after a Supreme Court judge ruled last week that enough senators supported the investigation.