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BRAZILIA – As Brazil faces an increase in Covid-19 cases and deaths, President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday criticized the isolation measures used to reduce the spread of the new coronavirus. Bolsonaro said that these measures are “irresponsible” and that they can lead the country to “chaos.” The president also criticized the use of masks, considered by specialists as essential to reduce infection.
This Thursday, for the third day in a row, Brazil registered more than a thousand deaths caused by Covid-19. The country closes 2020 with 194,976 victims of the disease. Bolsonaro did not comment on the deaths in his weekly broadcast on social media, but criticized some measures taken by governors and mayors, such as shutting down commerce and restricting the movement of people, saying they are harmful to the economy.
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– Chaos may be present. With the economic team, and a few more ministers, we managed to avoid chaos. But if this policy of closure, affects the economy at heart, we can bring chaos here – said the president. – And this hell, this refuge, returns, for irresponsibility of closing everything.
Bolsonaro once again defended that members of the risk group, such as the elderly and people with certain diseases, should be isolated.
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Criticism of the use of masks
While acknowledging that he is not an “expert on the subject”, Bolsonaro said that the cloth masks are a “fiction” that has “practically zero” protection against the coronavirus; in fact, several studies point to the importance of the device.
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– They talk a lot about masks. All the time this poor medium said: “the president without a mask.” You haven’t pissed off yet, have you? Said the president. – This is fiction. When are we going to have people with courage, who are not an expert on the subject, to say that the protection of the mask is a small percentage? The mask works for the doctor, who is operating a specific mask. Ours here, practically zero.
A study conducted in Germany and published earlier this month showed that wearing masks reduced the incidence of Covid-19 by an average of 47%.
Other recent studies, such as one conducted at Virginia Tech University and another by researchers from the University of Cambridge and Northwestern University, have shown that tissue masks are effective in protecting against Covid-19.
Purchase of syringes
Bolsonaro also defended the Ministry of Health after the failure of a public notice for the purchase of syringes and needles for vaccination against Covid-19. The portfolio only managed to secure 7.9 million units, while seeking to acquire 331.2 million.
The president attributed the result to an increase in the price of products:
– Do you know how much the syringe cost in Brazil? Do you know how it is producing this, how the market reacted knowing that we had to buy 100 million or more syringes? When there is a great demand and the production is not good, the price goes up.
