If Brazil suspends classes, it could spark a hunger crisis

As confirmed Covid-19 cases balloon in Brazil, the federal government could bring school holidays forward in order to contain the virus’ spread, a move being pulled by several countries. As a matter of fact, many state authorities—notably in Rio de Janeiro and Brasília—have already begun to suspend classes in reaction to the World Health Organization declaring a global pandemic. In the U.S., where over 10,000 schools are shut or about to close, three dozen infectious disease experts signed a letter calling on New York Mayor Bill de Blasio to close all schools. According to experts, school closures have helped authorities contain past pandemics.

In Brazil, however, authorities have a reason not to jump the gun—as the move could generate results opposite to what is intended.

“It could force families with working parents to leave their children with their grandparents. And while Covid-19 has had a near-zero mortality rate among children, its lethality jumps to 15 percent among the elderly,” wrote the Brazilian Society of Research on Infectious Diseases, discouraging the closure of schools, universities, and offices where no confirmed cases have been...