Brazil’s health minister quits just weeks after being appointed – The National

Brazil’s health minister quits just weeks after being appointed – The National

Brazil's health minister quits just weeks after being appointed. Nelson Teich was appointed after President Bolsonaro opposed his previous minister's stance on dealing with the coronavirus. The minister's office said he had handed in his resignation and would hold a press conference later in the day.. Mr Bolsonaro has been pushing in recent days for wider use of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for coronavirus, something Mr Teich rejected.. Last week, the minister said he was not consulted before Mr Bolsonaro issued a decree allowing gyms, beauty parlours and hairdressers to open for business.. His resignation came a day after Brazil's confirmed cases of the virus passed 200,000, with more than 14,000 deaths.. Mr Teich took office on April 17 after Mr Bolsonaro sacked former health minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta, whose support for lockdown measures went against the president's wishes to keep the economy going.. Mr Teich, an oncologist and senior consultant at medical services company Teich Health Care, said at a press conference to announce his appointment that he and the president were "completely aligned"..