Federal and state authorities must come together amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Mexico reached agreements with China and the United States to purchase PPE and ventilators, which are essential to tackle the novel coronavirus.

Mexico created an “air bridge” with China and until now, it has deployed 24 flights to carry PPE and other supplies. On the other hand, Mexico purchased ventilators from the U.S.

What the country has achieved with foreign nations has been impossible to achieve inside the country. The communication and the relationship between the federal government and state governments should be close and constant but it seemed to be deteriorating.

Last week, Dr. Hugo López-Gatell, Mexico’s COVID-19 czar, did not present the national evaluation of the pandemic, something he usually does every week and said that it was due to the inconsistencies found in the information provided by the states. Immediately, several governors denied the claims and said that they follow what the Federal Health Ministry established and asked for a meeting between federal and state authorities.

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On Sunday, PAN governors insisted on a meeting with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to launch a coordinated strategy to face the pandemic.

When thousands of lives are at stake, problems between federal and state authorities will only worsen the situation.

There will be states that handle the crisis in a better way because they have the necessary resources, but in other states, the emergency could turn into a humanitarian crisis.

In the last three days, EL UNIVERSAL has informed about overcrowded hospitals in Tabasco. Moreover, the general Juchitán hospital is in quarantine because the majority of the staff contracted COVID-19. In Nuevo León, hospital occupancy has increased 4.3 times in the last two weeks. Also, recently-published headlined include “Experts warn about the imminent collapse of hospitals in Baja California Sur” and “COVID-19 contagions increased 8 days after Guerrero reopened.”

The World Health Organization warned about a hasty reopening in Mexico, and the Pan American Health Organization said the situation was “extremely complex” in Mexico.

If something is not properly working, it is urgent to modify it; however, coordination between federal and state authorities is more important if the government wants to save lives.

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