Coronavirus

Out of protection equipment, Brazilian nursing homes fear death spike

ppe Regulator to offer private insurance companies BRL 15 million

The high demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) has made it hard for nursing homes to prepare for the arrival of Covid-19 in their facilities — as they concentrate people in high-risk groups. In São Paulo, the worst-affected Brazilian state, there are nearly 40,000 elderly citizens living in over 1,500 nursing homes. Although there are no confirmed cases in these institutions located in the capital, an 81- and an 86-year-old who lived in nursing homes died of Covid-19 in the countryside.

The president of the Nursing Homes Association of São Paulo, Matthias Weisheit, is worried this number could rapidly increase, as access to PPE is limited. After not being able to buy any masks, Mr. Weisheit said nursing homes are replacing them with hair caps.