Nelson Almeida/AFP/Getty Images
Updated 0105 GMT (0905 HKT) May 23, 2020
Nelson Almeida/AFP/Getty Images
Brazil is one of the few large countries in the world where coronavirus cases — and death rates — are still rising.
It is Latin America’s hardest-hit country, with confirmed cases climbing by the thousands each day.
Only the United States has more confirmed cases than Brazil, which passed 300,000 this week. More than 20,000 people have died.
The health care system in Brazil’s largest city, Sao Paulo, is wavering on the brink of collapse. Its mayor warned that the health system could be overwhelmed soon if residents don’t follow social-distancing guidelines.
President Jair Bolsonaro continues to dismiss the threat of the virus, saying quarantines and lockdowns could have a worse impact on Brazil’s economy. He has repeatedly dismissed Covid-19 as a “little flu” and urged businesses to reopen, even as many governors scramble to implement social-distancing measures and slow the spread.
