Bolivia To Close Borders To Prevent Entry Of COVID-19 Strains

Bolivia's Health Vice Minister Maria Castro informed Thursday that President Luis Arce's government will close all borders if necessary to prevent the entry and spread of COVID-19 variants into the country.

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"With this decision, we will prevent the strains of the disease from keep circulating in the country," Castro said and recalled that the new mutations are causing much havoc in neighboring countries, such as Brazil and Peru.

On Wednesday, the Health Ministry informed that the British variant was already circulating in La Paz and Santa Cruz, the most populated cities in Bolivia.

The Mayor de San Andres University (UMSA) also carried out a study that confirmed the Brazilian variant in Santa Cruz and Beni departments. This has not been confirmed by the country's health authorities.

On Tuesday, Health Minister Jeyson Auza assured that the government will strengthen epidemiological surveillance in the border territories with Brazil. 

"In this context, we demand the people not to relax the health measures, and to comply with social distancing, hand washing, and mandatory mask use," Castro added.

Since March 2020, Bolivia has registered over 293,000 COVID-19 cases and 12,700 deaths due to the disease.