Brazil’s Minister of Health, General Pazuello Says Pandemic Has Reached Stability

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – After four months in charge of the Ministry of Health on an interim basis, General Eduardo Pazuello was made permanent in the portfolio by President Jair Bolsonaro in a ceremony held on Wednesday, September 16th, at the Planalto Palace. Pazuello replaced oncologist Nelson Teich in May as interim minister, with the challenge to support states and municipalities and help control the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil.

Currently, the country records over 133,000 deaths by Covid-19 and has 4.3 million confirmed cases of the disease. According to an international panel conducted by Johns Hopkins University, Brazil ranks third in number of infections, behind the United States and India, and second in number of deaths, behind only the US.

In his inauguration speech as full Minister, Pazuello said that the country managed to stabilize the spread of the pandemic. “We have achieved a situation of well-defined stability. In the North and Northeast, where the numbers are in full decline and the population is already returning to their normal activities. In the Center-South, the downward trend is evident and we can see a return to normality very soon. These are the clear and positive indications that all our work and commitment is achieving the expected result,” he said.

Pazuello also advocated the change of protocol for the early treatment undertaken by the portfolio, under his command, since June. “The learning throughout the pandemic has shown us that the earlier we assist patients, the better their chances of recovery are. Early treatment saves lives, that’s why we have been saying day after day: don’t stay home waiting to have shortness of breath, don’t wait. Look for a doctor, get a clinical diagnosis from a doctor,” he said.

During the inauguration, President Jair Bolsonaro stressed the extent of his minister’s responsibility and thanked him for accepting the challenge: “I admit that it’s less difficult to be the President of the Republic than the Minister of Health. Your responsibility is tremendous, and I want to thank you for taking up this challenge.”

Bolsonaro again criticized the isolation policy during quarantine, with the closure of economic activities. He recalled one of his speeches on national radio and television at the start of the pandemic, in which he stated the need to fight for jobs and praised the economic measures adopted by his team since then.

“I said at the time, when I was severely criticized, that we had two problems ahead of us, the virus and unemployment, and that both should be addressed with the same responsibility and concurrently. I want to congratulate the economic team, Minister Paulo Guedes, who adopted a series of measures to preserve jobs in Brazil.”

The President also criticized the suspension of basic education classes in Brazil. “We are the country with the highest number of lockdown days in schools. This is absurd.”

Also during his speech, Bolsonaro advocated the treatment of Covid-19 with chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine. The drug, which has no proven scientific efficacy, can be prescribed by doctors upon patient agreement.

“Nothing fairer, nothing more sacred than a doctor, at the end of the line, to decide what to prescribe to a patient, in the absence of a scientifically proven medicine,” he said.

Source: Agência Brasil