Peru health chief resigns over former president's vaccination scandal

Peruvian President Francisco Sagasti said on Saturday that he accepted the resignation of his health minister after a scandal over former President Martin Vizcarra taking a coronavirus vaccine before it was widely available in the country.

Peruvian President Francisco Sagasti said on Saturday that he accepted the resignation of his health minister after a scandal over former President Martin Vizcarra taking a coronavirus vaccine before it was widely available in the country. The resignation of Pilar Mazzetti, who led the health office during Vizcarra's administration, comes just after the country on Tuesday began a vaccination program, inoculating health personnel exposed to contracting the disease.

Vizcarra has said he did not jump the line to receive the vaccination, but rather that he got the jab as part of a trial. Local media questioned that explanation. "The minister presented her resignation last night," Sagasti told local radio. The new head of the ministry will be Oscar Ugarte, a doctor who held the same position a decade ago, he said.

The vaccination currently being used in Peru was developed by Chinese company Sinopharm. Mazzetti was called to Congress last week where she said that she did not know if the former president was part of the vaccine trials that were carried out at the end of last year. Opposition lawmakers demanded her resignation.

Peru has had about 43,250 deaths from COVID-19 so far. The country is facing a second wave of infections with saturated hospitals and a shortage of medical equipment. In particular, Peru lacks enough oxigen units to apply to all patients who need them. "We have already been in contact with the Chilean government, which has generously offered to bring and give us oxygen," Sagasti said.

Sagasti was one of the first to receive the Sinopharm vaccine as part of the campaign.