Brazil’s chief health official resigns as country’s coronavirus deaths surge past 14,000

Nelson Teich quits less than a month after his appointment by Jair Bolsonaro, who fired previous minister over disagreements over social distancing

Brazil's chief health official has resigned less than a month after right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro appointed him to the job.

Oncologist Nelson Teich's departure comes as the nation's coronavirus death toll soars past 14,000.

He submitted his resignation three weeks after the president had fired his predecessor Luiz Henrique Mandetta, Reuters reported.

Deputy minister Eduardo Pazuello will helm the office in the interim.

His departure follows disagreements over the president's application of chloroquine to treat Covid-19 patients, echoing Donald Trump's enthusiasm for the controversial drug, and relieving isolation measures in the middle of the country's outbreak. Mr Bolsonaro continues to undermine health officials and downplay the risk of transmission.

Earlier this month, the president told a reporter "so what?" when asked about the country's rising death toll, a figure that has since tripled in less than three weeks.

"Sorry, but what do you want me to do?" he said before joking about his middle name. "My name is Messiah, but I can't work miracles."

More than 200,000 cases of the virus have been identified, though health officials warn that number is likely much higher, with limited testing capacity to capture the spread of the disease in a country of more than 200 million people.

Mr Bolsonaro, who has called Covid-19 a "little flu", has raged at governors for ignoring his demand that gyms and barbers remain open as essential services, warning that a quarantine would spell economic doom, while doctors and scientists say that lockdown efforts should have been in place weeks if not months ago as infections surge.

During a press conference earlier this week, Mr Teich appeared to be caught off guard when asked about the president's directive to keep those businesses open and said it did not have his agency's approval.

Mr Bolsonaro's apparent lack of empathy during the crisis has alienated him from others in his administration, forcing him to rely on embattled military officials and politicians embroiled in their own corruption scandals.

In a statement addressing his resignation, Mr Teich said he intended to hold a press conference on Friday afternoon.