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BRASÍLIA – President Jair Bolsonaro admitted this Saturday that he could be vaccinated against Covid-19. The statement reinforces a change of position in relation to immunization, after countless speeches against the possibility of consuming the drug.
– But I think that this vaccine of mine has to be administered to someone who has not yet contracted the virus and has a much, much greater risk than mine. For my part, there is no problem in looking for a health center, since that is where my age group entered – Bolsonaro said in a conversation with journalists at the door of the Palácio da Alvorada.
See: Seven times that Bolsonaro advised against vaccines against Covid-19
According to the vaccination schedule in the Federal District, Bolsonaro can already be vaccinated as of this Saturday, being 66 years old. There is no information yet on when and if the president will be effectively immunized.
In recent months, Bolsonaro has made statements against immunization, even saying that he does not see the need to get vaccinated because he has already contracted the disease. The vaccine, however, is also indicated for those who have already been infected with the new coronavirus.
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In a live broadcast on social media on Thursday, the president had already considered getting vaccinated, but said he would only make a decision on this after the last Brazilian was immunized.
– I think it should happen: after the last Brazilian is vaccinated, if there is a vaccine left, then I will decide whether to vaccinate or not – he said at the time.
In addition to ruling out immunization, the president criticized the vaccination campaign throughout the pandemic. He challenged the safety and efficacy of vaccines, especially CoronaVac, developed by Sinovac Biotech in association with the Butantan Institute, on several occasions, in addition to taking a position against mandatory vaccination.
Find it now: What’s your place in the vaccine queue?
The most iconic case, which became a meme on social media, was when it was claimed in December that anyone who received the Pfizer-developed drug could become an alligator.
– If you turn into a chi … you turn into an alligator, it’s your problem, damn it. I won’t talk about another animal, because they think I’m going to talk nonsense here, right? If you become a superman, if a woman grows a beard there, or if a man starts talking thin, they have nothing to do with it. Or, worse, disrupt people’s immune systems, he said, on December 18 of last year.
There were also successive delays and refusals in the purchase of vaccines, which led Brazil to a shortage of doses and slow immunization, amid the collapse of health units, lack of supplies and the health crisis.
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In addition, Bolsonaro advocated early treatment, with drugs of proven ineffectiveness for COVID-19, such as chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin. The so-called “Covid kit” was even distributed in health units.
Ivermectin is suspected to have led four patients in São Paulo to join the queue for liver transplants. Three others infected with covid-19 are said to have died after being sprayed with hydroxychloroquine in Ro Grande do Sul.
