COVID-19 World No.2 Brazil... President Also Infected

Positive Test Result Amid Mask Refusal Controversy

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The president of Brazil, which has the second highest number of COVID-19 cases in the world, has tested positive for the coronavirus.

Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil, announced in an interview with the state-run TV Brasil on the 7th (local time) that he tested positive for COVID-19 the day before.

President Bolsonaro showed suspected COVID-19 symptoms such as coughing and high fever since the 5th, and as his symptoms worsened the day before, he was tested at a military hospital in the capital, Brasilia.

The presidential medical team prescribed hydroxychloroquine, a drug similar to malaria medication, and it was reported that President Bolsonaro took it twice, once the night before and once the morning of the day of the announcement.

President Bolsonaro is known to have canceled official schedules and entered self-quarantine at the presidential residence.

President Bolsonaro has been criticized for ignoring health authorities' recommendations by walking around downtown Brasilia without wearing a mask, shaking hands, and hugging supporters.

According to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University in the United States, Brazil has 1.62 million COVID-19 cases, making it the country with the second highest number of cases in the world after the United States.