Emails reveal orders to underreport Covid-19 cases at health centers in São Paulo.
Emails from the São Paulo Municipal Health Department and a social health organization called Cejam, obtained by CNN Brazil, show a directive that only cases of healthcare professionals with respiratory complaints should be officially reported to the Federal Government.
247 - According to a report by CNN BrazilAt least 37 health centers in the city of São Paulo are not notifying the Ministry of Health about new cases of the novel coronavirus.
The information is based on internal emails from the São Paulo Municipal Health Department and a social health organization called the Dr. João Amorim Center for Studies and Research (Cejam), which is responsible for managing these public health units.
"The document stipulates that only cases of healthcare professionals with respiratory complaints should be officially reported to the Federal Government. Cejam has more than 80 health services and programs in the municipalities of São Paulo, Mogi das Cruzes, Rio de Janeiro, Embu das Artes, and Campinas," the report highlights, also noting that the organization manages health services in the Jardim Ângela and Capão Redondo neighborhoods in the southern zone, totaling 30 Basic Health Units (UBS) and 164 teams, serving approximately 614 inhabitants in the two regions.