Jorge Rodríguez: Venezuela has Chloroquine and Antivirals to Treat up to 115 Thousand Cases (Covid-19)

Venezuelan minister of communication, Jorge Rodríguez, announced at a press conference this Monday that the country has an arsenal of 250,000 hydroxychloroquine tablets, useful for children and minors infected with Covid-19. There are also 2,300,000 tablets of chloroquine phosphate, a drug that began to be used therapeutically in positive cases of Covid-19 and can help more than 115,000 patients. The Ministry of Health has distributed it throughout the country and another 500 thousand are about to arrive to the country. On the other hand, until 1 p.m. on Monday 23rd, the figures in Venezuela continued in 77 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and no deaths.

Rodríguez also indicated that there is a significant number of other antivirals to treat more than 135,000 cases that could be identified in the country, but that have been contained thanks to the collective social quarantine that has been exercised by the Venezuelan people.

During his address, he reported that chloroquine will be used in patients infected with the coronavirus, as well as their inner circle and also health personnel who are in contact with patients. This measure was ordered by the president of the republic, Nicolás Maduro Moros, who received various reports, including that of the World Health Organization (WHO), because the studies carried out show that chloroquine has the ability to inhibit and decrease the viral load of this pandemic.

Chloroquine is a medicine used in the treatment or prevention of malaria for more than 50 years. It is made in Venezuela by the Socialist Company that Produces Biological Medicines (Espromed BIO), according to the “Arsenal Terapéutico” website.

Beds ready

He also reported that 23,762 beds are available in the country for hospitalization of patients with coronavirus:

The public network has 11,000 beds.
The Comprehensive Diagnostic Centers (CDI) have 4,003 beds.
The private network has 4,759 beds.
4,000 hotel beds are arranged to isolate patients who “have minor symptoms.”

Rodríguez specified that the country’s public hospital network has 450 intensive care beds to attend to patients with Covid-19 in critical condition, while Barrio Adentro has 573 beds and the private health network has another 190 beds, for a total of 1,213 intensive care beds.

135 people being tested

Rodríguez, reported that 11,605,744 people in the country have answered the Covid-19 survey in the Patria system for the detection of coronavirus, which found that 18,365 people should be contacted for presenting symptoms, so between Friday and Sunday, a house-to-house deployment was made with the comprehensive Cuban medical mission and Venezuelan doctors, to check the cases.

From this tour, it was recorded that 135 people remain in Comprehensive Diagnosis Centers (CDI) in the country while they are being tested for Covid-19 screening. “Today, Monday, we are practicing diagnostic tests, if someone appears positive, we isolate them, we look for contacts and we also do tests” to rule out new coronavirus infections,” he said.

In this sense, he invited Venezuelans to participate in the surveys through the Patria System on the page www.patria.org.ve to provide data that allows health authorities to detect possible cases of Covid-19 and prevent the spread of the virus.

Delay in social isolation increases coronavirus cases worldwide by 40%

Rodríguez also reported that 97% of the countries in the world present cases of Covid-19 and noted that when social isolation is not implemented, there is an increase of 40% of cases of coronavirus.

“What is the purpose of quarantine? To lower the infected curve to avoid hospitalizations and avoid deaths from Covi-19, ” he explained.

He stressed that if President Nicolás Maduro did not decree the social and collective quarantine on March 15, Venezuela would report at this time “a little more than 2,000 cases, and in four days about 6,000 cases of Covid-19.”

In this sense, he stressed the importance of Venezuelans complying with social distancing and taking the proper hygiene measures, such as hand washing and disinfection of objects.

He also pointed out that the Bolivarian government ensures health protocols to face Covid-19 despite the economic and financial blockade that the United States has imposed against Venezuela, which it described as “a true crime against humanity, against the people of Venezuela” promoted by the United States regime.

“To buy a diagnostic test we have to triangulate througg different countries. Donald Trump government is persecuting Venezuela’s efforts to buy the supplies needed to deal with Covid-19, ” said Rodríguez.

He urged the US government to release the funds from Venezuela that are held in foreign banks and to stop imposing unilateral coercive measures against the country. In addition, he demanded that Venezuela be allowed access to the international financial system, as other countries in the world have done to face the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Let the people have no doubt that we are defeating the Covid-19, thanks to the quarantine and the conscience of all Venezuelans,” he said.

Source URL: Alba Ciudad

Translated by JRE/EF