COVID-19 in Brazil: advantages of a socialized unified health system and preparation to contain cases

Abstract

The outbreak of new coronavirus disease 2019 reported for the first time in Wuhan, China in late December 2019 have rapidly spread to other countries and it was declared on January 30, 2020 as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization. Before the first COVID-19 cases were reported in Brazil, several measures have been implemented including the adjustment of legal framework to carry out isolation and quarantine. As the cases increased significantly, new measures, mainly to reduce mortality and severe cases, have also been implemented. Rapid and robust preparedness actions have been undertaken in Brazil while first cases have not yet been identified in Latin-American. The outcome of this early preparation should be analyzed in future studies.

Confidence in social institutions, perceived vulnerability and the adoption of recommended protective behaviors in Brazil during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…As in other countries, the first confirmed case was a resident coming back from overseas ( Jesus et al, 2020 ). The number of cases increased rapidly, and as of March 31, 5,933 reported cases and 206 deaths had been registered in Brazil ( Croda, et al, 2020 ). Since then, the disease has been spreading rapidly.…”

“…Brazil declared a public health emergency in early March, just a few days after the World Health Organization did ( Croda, et al, 2020 ). The President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, dismissed the danger posed by the virus, and rejected state-mandated social distancing and other measures ( Freitas, Silva and Cidade, 2020 ).…”

O desafio da inclusão de pessoas com deficiência na estratégia de enfrentamento à pandemia de COVID-19 no Brasil

“…7,8 In the midst of Brazil's complex epidemiological, political and socioeconomic context, as well as the budget restrictions imposed by the Constitutional Amendment of 95 9 and political and scientific tensions in society on how to address the pandemic, 3,10 it has fallen to the diverse leaders of the Brazilian national health system, Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), to invest and act in the areas of prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. 11 The government, civil society and social watchdog mechanisms of SUS policy have taken action in the protection of people with disabilities in the context of the pandemic. These actions include accessible information campaigns, initiatives to increase social protection, through social distancing and isolation, and preventive measures in therapeutic and inclusive residences.…”

A parametrized nonlinear predictive control strategy for relaxing COVID-19 social distancing measures in Brazil

“…Brazil has shown itself to be a very particular case regarding COVID-19, as discuss Croda et al [4] : the country is very large, with federated states that have chosen independent tactics to address the contagion. Furthermore, there has been no coordinated national public health policy; the federal government has openly expressed its unwillingness to determine any strict quarantine measure, claiming that the negative economic effects would be too steep [5] , [6] , [7] .…”