Brazil’s New Health Minister Acknowledges Worsening Situation

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Nelson Teich, the Minister of Health, said at a media conference in Brasília that the increase in cases is a trend. Earlier, he had reasoned that it would be necessary to determine whether the figures reflect the update of previous cases or whether they, in fact, represent an increase.

“The curve is growing and the situation is getting worse. This remains restricted to the places that are facing the greatest difficulties, such as Manaus, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo. We understand that Brazil has to be addressed differently, but we will keep monitoring places with a worsening scenario to see how it will evolve,” said Nelson Teich.

According to the Ministry of Health’s April 28th report, Brazil has 71,886 infected people, 5,017 deaths, and 32,544 recovered patients who no longer have symptoms of the disease. The mortality rate has risen to seven percent, the highest since the start of the pandemic in the country.

The cities most affected by the pandemic are now experiencing the collapse of their health systems. In Manaus, Fortaleza and Rio de Janeiro there are queues for intensive care unit (ICU) beds. The scenario is worrying in other places, such as the metropolitan regions of Recife and Belém.

On Tuesday, April 28th, Teich met with governors from Brazil’s Northern Region. Yesterday, the Minister met with governors of the South and Northeast regions. And today, Thursday, he will meet with governors from the Southeast and Central West regions.

He said the Ministry is “working to assist” the most affected places, through the acquisition of ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE) and human resources.

“As of tomorrow, we will distribute 185 ventilators to the most affected states and municipalities. We will be shipping new PPE kits to more affected states and are hiring human resources to strengthen health teams. In addition to laboratory tests, rapid tests, all this is happening simultaneously,” added the ministry’s executive secretary, Eduardo Pazuello.

Pazuello did not detail the numbers other than ventilators. According to the entity’s Beds and Supplies Panel, so far 20 ventilators have been delivered. Although there is no record on the procured beds, the government announced that it would have provided 540 beds.

Yesterday, a public tender was announced for the procurement of a further 2,000 beds. The proposals will be published on Thursday, April 30th. The selected candidates will have from seven to 10 days to set up the beds, divided into 200 sets of ten beds each.

According to the Ministry of Health platform, so far 3.4 million rapid tests have been transferred, 35.2 million hair nets, 25.9 million surgical masks, 2.2 million N95 masks, and 1.5 million medical gowns.

“This is a difficult situation. We know how difficult it is to secure resources like ventilators. This is perhaps the greatest issue. It’s a worldwide problem. We are competing with the whole world. We are trying to understand how Brazil is working. This centralization is crucial for distribution to be based on the most immediate need of each city,” commented Nelson Teich.

Source: Agência Brasil