RIO DE JANEIRO – Faced with overwhelmed hospitals and surging coronavirus deaths, Brazilian state and city governments are lurching forward with mandatory lockdowns against the will of President Jair Bolsonaro, who says job losses are more damaging than COVID-19.
The movements of Brazilians have been completely restricted in fewer than two dozen cities scattered across the vast nation of 211 million — even though Brazil's death toll stands at more than 11,000, Latin America's highest.
While public health experts are demanding bolder action, most governors and mayors have not imposed mandatory stay-at-home orders.