BRASILIA (BRAZIL) – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Monday that people will not be forced to have the vaccine against the pandemic once it is developed.
“No one can force anyone to get a vaccine,” he said in response to a question from a supporter.
With 3,908,272 confirmed cases and 121,381 deaths from COVID-19, Brazil has become a hot spot in recent months.
According to the Health Ministry, 45,961 new cases of the coronavirus were reported and 553 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.
Despite having recovered from the coronavirus, Bolsonaro has been downplaying its importance, calling it a “small flu”.
However, his government has set aside 1.9 billion reais ($346 million) in early August for funds to buy 100 million doses of the vaccine candidate being developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca PLC and to later produce it in Brazil.
Brazil hopes distribution of China’s Sinovac Biotech, which they are working on, can begin at the start of next year.
Bolsonaro’s acting Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello, an Army general, appointed on Friday a veterinarian to lead Brazil’s vaccination programme.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field.