Explaining Brazil #93: Coronavirus: the risks for Brazil

Photo: Robert Wei/Shutterstock

Even more contagious than the new strain of coronavirus that emerged in mid-December is misinformation about the disease. The number of cases is jumping every day; people are dying, and the world is beginning to panic. As of January 29, 15 countries had already confirmed having at least one coronavirus infection. This week, we try to set the record straight and explain what exactly is the risk Brazilians are exposed to when it comes to this new strain of coronavirus.

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On this episode:

Rosana Richtmann is an infectious diseases specialist at the Emilio Ribas Institute, in São Paulo. She holds a Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of Freiburg, in Germany. Dr. Richtmann is also a member of the Brazilian Infectiology Society and has been a leading voice against misinformation about contagious diseases and vaccination.

Background reading:

In our January 23 Daily Briefing, we talked about how authorities’ disagreements over possible coronavirus infections may fuel conspiracy theories and panic among the population.
Investors began panicking on Monday, after recent developments concerning the coronavirus outbreak.
Brazil is no stranger to health scares. Just last year, fears loomed in Brazil of a possible comeback of yellow fever.
The 2015–2016 Zika virus spread is perhaps the best example of how Brazil can deal with a new virus while the outbreak is ongoing. In 2019, Brazilians developed a state-of-the-art Zika test.

Explaining Brazil is made by:

Gustavo Ribeiro, editor in chief of The Brazilian Report. He has extensive experience covering Brazilian politics. His work has been featured across Brazilian and French media outlets, including Veja, Época, Folha de S.Paulo, Médiapart, and Radio France Internationale.
Euan Marshall, editing. Euan is a journalist and translator who has lived in São Paulo, Brazil since 2011. Specializing in Brazilian soccer, politics and the connection between the two, his work has been published in The Telegraph, Al Jazeera, The Independent, among others.
Natália Scalzaretto, producing. Natália has worked for companies such as Santander Brasil and Reuters, where she covered news ranging from commodities to technology. Most recently, she worked as an Editor for Trading News, the information division of the TradersClub investor community.