Brazil Covid deaths pass 3,000 for first time; EU to tighten export rules to stop one-way flow of vaccines; new US surgeon general to focus on Covid, opioids
- EU to widen criteria for possible Covid vaccine bans
- Greece and Spain to ease restrictions on flights from UK
- US agency questions AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine trial data
- UK and EU may share Netherlands vaccine supplies to ease tensions
- See all our coronavirus coverage
Brazil suffered a record 3,251 Covid-19 deaths on Tuesday, as President Jair Bolsonaro prepared to address the nation after swearing in his fourth health minister since the country’s snowballing coronavirus pandemic began last year, Reuters.
The new record number of daily deaths underlines the scale of Brazil’s outbreak, which is spiraling out of control thanks to a lumpy vaccine rollout and a messy patchwork of public health restrictions that are pushing the country’s hospitals to breaking point.
Bolsonaro is under mounting pressure to control the outbreak, after repeatedly playing down the virus, sowing doubts about vaccines and fighting state and local lockdown measures.
On Tuesday, ahead of a televised national address, he swore in cardiologist Marcelo Queiroga in a closed ceremony, the Health Ministry said in a statement. Tapped by Bolsonaro on March 15, Queiroga replaces Eduardo Pazuello, an active-duty army general who has overseen most of the pandemic response.
It remains to be seen what path Queiroga will chart as health minister. Pazuello’s two predecessors both left government after clashing with Bolsonaro’s views on Covid.
Bolsonaro has gained international notoriety for his efforts to fight lockdowns, dismiss mask mandates and advocate unproven remedies such as hydroxychloroquine.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic with me, Helen Sullivan.
I’ll be bringing you the latest global developments for the next while. As always, you can say Hi on Twitter @helenrsullivan.
Continue reading...from World news | The Guardian https://ift.tt/3d4N3Am
via IFTTT
via Blogger https://ift.tt/3d04B0P
March 24, 2021 at 01:30AM
0 Comments