Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro observes a ceremony to lower the Brazilian national flag at night, at the Alvorada Palace, in the midst of the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Brasilia, Brazil, on July 15 2020. REUTERS / Ueslei Marcelino
SAO PAULO / BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, on Wednesday, once again exalted the alleged virtues of hydroxychloroquine, the antimalarial drug, to fight COVID-19, as he said he again tested positive for the coronavirus, a week after it was first announced that it had developed. infected.
“From the beginning I was medicated with hydroxychloroquine, with the recommendation of a doctor. I felt better the next day, ”Bolsonaro said in a video posted on social media. “Whether it’s a coincidence or not … it worked for me.”
Like the close ally of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, Bolsonaro has been quick to sing the praises of hydroxychloroquine, despite little scientific evidence that it works against the new coronavirus.
Since contracting the virus, Bolsonaro has said that he remains in good health and will resume his normal working hours once he tests negative.
On Wednesday, he appeared at a flag ceremony on the presidential palace grounds, wearing a mask and staying at a distance from the others. He said he would be tested again in a few days.
Bolsonaro has brushed aside medical experts in managing the pandemic in Brazil, which has become the worst in the world outside of the United States. He has rejected state and municipal blockades and has often circulated in public without a mask, drawing criticism from public health specialists.
Pressure from the right-wing president to use hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19 in Brazil alienated two health ministers, who resigned amid the pandemic. The ministry is currently being led by an active-duty army general, who appeared to be slated to remain in office for the time being, sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
Bolsonaro, a former army captain, first announced his diagnosis on July 7.
He described the disease early in the pandemic as a “little flu” and has downplayed the country’s growing death toll, now more than 75,000, and said he has a strong “athletic history” that would protect him from developing severe symptoms.
Reports by Marcelo Rochabrun and Leonardo Benassatto; Additional reports by Lisandra Paraguassu and Alexandre Caverni; Editing by Christian Plumb, Richard Chang and Rosalba O’Brien
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