City of São Paulo to request 20 percent of private ICU beds

São Paulo municipal authorities will request the use of 20 percent of private intensive care units (ICU) in the city to help in the fight against Covid-19. The measure would represent an additional 800 ICU beds for the public system. Mayor Bruno Covas said he is in talks with the administrators of private hospitals, but would not rule out the possibility of filing a lawsuit to obtain control of these beds if an amicable agreement is not reached.

On April 27, reporter André Cabette Fábio explained that several organizations are pushing for the integration of Brazil’s public and private healthcare networks. That could avoid a collapse of São Paulo’s health system.

Mr. Covas also decided to punish protesters who demonstrate against stay-home orders in front of hospitals — which is becoming a sad recurrence in the country’s biggest city. “People can think that the Earth is flat, or that the virus is not deadly […] But it is not appropriate to protest with horns next to a hospital,” said the mayor.

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