Brasilia, March 12 (RHC)-- In the Brazilian capital, tthe Court of Accounts of the Union (TCU) has decided to launch an investigation into the waste of millions of COVID-19 vaccines during the administration of Jair Bolsonaro.
The TCU created a special commission to investigate irregularities in the storage of vaccines, medicines, supplies, and diagnostic tests that had a specific expiration date. The measure was taken at the request of a group of lawmakers who denounced that the Brazilian State lost some US$48.6 million due to the waste of medical materials.
According to a preliminary report, nearly two million COVID-19 doses donated to Brazil were "discarded." For those vaccines, however, Brazil paid for transportation, customs procedures, storage, and incineration.
Due to the "logistical failures" inherited from the Bolsonaro era, the TCU recommended that the Health Ministry prepare a report on the current condition of the vaccines in stock within ten days and deliver an action plan to improve logistics in about three months.
Since 2020, Brazil has been one of the countries hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused the deaths of some 699,000 Brazilians and 37 million infections.
During the pandemic, the Brazilian Senate installed a commission to investigate the worsening of public health caused by Bolsonaro, a far-right politician who was known for minimizing the importance of the pandemic and obstructing mass vaccination.
