BOLSONARO'S THREAT. Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro wears a face mask during a press conference on the coronavirus pandemic COVID-19 at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil on March 20, 2020. File photo by Sergio Lima/AFP
Sometimes called a"Tropical Trump," Bolsonaro has followed a similar script to the US president in his handling of the pandemic, downplaying its severity, attacking state authorities' stay-at-home measures and touting the purported effects of hydroxychloroquine and a related anti-malarial drug, chloroquine, against COVID-19.
However, adding to the swirling scientific and political debate, a new study from Oxford University said Friday that hydroxychloroquine showed"no beneficial effect" in treating COVID-19., saying that"in light of evolving evidence" they should be worn in places where the virus is widespread and physical distancing is difficult.The new coronavirus has now killed more than 394,000 people and infected 6.