Brazilian coronavirus death record: 3,251 people have died in past 24 hours

Brazil, the country worst affected by the pandemic today, has around 300,000 deaths from covid-19, while shortages of oxygen and medicine for those infected with the virus threaten to worsen the collapse that the country is already experiencing due to the lack of quotas in Intensive Care Units (ICU) due to the increasing number of admissions.

The National Council of Secretaries of Health (Conass), which brings together health officials from the 27 states, revealed on Tuesday that 3,251 people have died from coronavirus disease in past 24 hours, a record number, thus reaching a total of 298,676 deaths since the start of the pandemic in the South American giant. In addition, 82,493 new cases in one day and there is a cumulative 12,130,019 infections.

The critical situation puts Brazil in check, because, in addition to the strong crisis that the health system is going through, criticisms remain on the questioned management of the government of Jair Bolsonaro, which works in a disjointed manner with regional leaders to make in the face of the worsening pandemic in the country.

While some of Brazil’s most populous states, such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, have adopted tough measures to fight infections, the president continues to deny the seriousness of the pandemic; ensures that the country is an example in the management of it and has even appealed to the Supreme Court to limit the powers of regional leaders.

Bolsonaro, the denarius

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected the president’s request, after calling it “totalitarian”, and ratified the ruling he had already issued since last year, according to which regional and local governments had the autonomy of ” impose restrictive measures against covid while they are. supported by a scientific committee.

Bolsonaro, one of the most covid denier leaders, encourages Brazilians to take to the streets, has no qualms about participating in crowded and unprotected public events, and constantly criticizes the toughening of measures adopted by mayors and country governors, such as closing shops and curfews to restrict mobility and prevent the spread of the virus.

Added to the crisis a drifting health ministry, because only eight days after Marcelo Queiroga was appointed new chief – the fourth during the pandemic – it is only until today that he has assumed the head of the portfolio in place of Army General Eduardo Pazuello, in a private ceremony that was not foreseen by the presidency.

The interim has further hampered leadership against the ministry’s covid, which is pushing forward a slow vaccination campaign and it operates reactively, seeking to put out fires caused by the lack of oxygen and the lack of ICU supplies, without a concrete plan to deal with the health crisis in the country.

Since January 17, the date on which the first person in Brazil was vaccinated, some 14 million doses have been applied throughout the country, or on the more than 210 million inhabitants of the South American giant, only 6.6% received at least one dose of an antidote for covid.

Regarding the oxygen shortage, the ministry stressed that six states are worried about the lack of vital gas (Acre, Rondônia, Mato Grosso, Amapá, Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte).

Although the wallet did not include it, the situation also on alert in San Pablo, where the prosecution is investigating the death of three people who died in the capital of São Paulo, after being transferred from a health center due to lack of oxygen.

The Brazilian engine is at the limit

San Pablo, the national economic engine and with a population of around 46 million, is the state most affected by the pandemic, with more than 68,000 deaths and 2.3 million infections since the first case was recorded in the country – and throughout Latin America – on February 26, 2020.

In the past 24 hours, the state has recorded 1,021 deaths from covid, a new daily high for the region and almost double the 679 deaths last Tuesday, until then the highest in São Paulo. The number of hospitalized patients with covid-19 has skyrocketed in recent weeks to nearly 30,000 people, including 12,168 in intensive care units (ICU).

The exponential growth of infections, aggravated by the circulation of new, more infectious variants of the coronavirus, has led the São Paulo ICUs to be at the limit, with an occupancy rate reaching 92%.

In addition to the lack of beds in hospitals, there are also concerns about the possible shortage of oxygen and drugs, such as sedatives and neuromuscular blockers, which are essential for patients with more severe symptoms of the disease.

With information from EFE

KEEP READING: