The Army denies the Rio de Janeiro city government's claims and says it did not decide on field hospitals.
The Eastern Military Command (CML) reported that nothing has yet been decided "regarding the possible use of Army field hospitals in the city of Rio de Janeiro," as announced by the city government.
Douglas Correa, Agência Brasil - The Eastern Military Command (CML) informed this Thursday (19), in an official note, that nothing has yet been decided “about a possible use of the Army's field hospitals in the city of Rio de Janeiro”, as announced by the city hall.
In the statement, the Army affirmed that these health resources are scarce and that their use, nationwide, "will be authorized by the Ministry of Defense, after careful evaluation by the Army Command."
The Eastern Military Command stated that "to date, no decision has been made regarding the activation of this type of health facility in any region of the country."
Answer
The Rio de Janeiro city government stated that it is in close contact with the Ministry of Defense regarding the construction of the field hospital at Riocentro. "In addition to sending an official letter to the Eastern Military Command, the city government has been dealing directly with those responsible to prepare all the necessary infrastructure for the hospital's installation."
According to the city hall, the Eastern Military Command only takes action when the opportune moment is signaled, and for that, the space must already be ready. "The assembly of the field hospital is done within 24 hours by the Army, according to the agreements between the parties."
announcement
The city government announced, without specifying a date, that it will set up a field hospital with the capacity to admit up to 500 patients at Riocentro, the city's main convention center, located in Jacarepaguá, in the western zone.
The beds in the makeshift hospital will be used to admit people recovering from elective surgeries or who are undergoing treatment in hospitals within the municipal network. The idea is to free up the beds occupied by these people so that Covid-19 patients can be treated.
State
The state government announced it will set up three hospitals, each with 100 beds in the first month and another 100 in the second month. One of them will be in Parque dos Atletas, very close to Riocentro.
Two more hospitals will be located outside the city: one at the Nova Iguaçu aeroclub, in the Baixada Fluminense region, and another in São Gonçalo. Unlike the city's hospital, these temporary state units will be dedicated to patients infected with the new coronavirus. The state hospitals will be set up without the assistance of the Armed Forces.