2020News

Public Health Ministry catches up with corpse management

Several public hospitals handling coronavirus cases in Santo Domingo suddenly were overrun with corpses. A story in Hoy newspaper pushed the Ministry of Public Health to act quicker and resolve the backup.

In his 14 April press conference, Public Health Minister Dr. Rafael Sánchez Cárdenas said the Ministry was taking charge. In some cases, funeral companies have been resisting to undertake the burial of coronavirus deaths. The situation worsened at the Moscoso Puello that also had to handle the bodies of dozens of indigents that died from intoxication with adulterated alcoholic beverages sold in colmados.

Dr. Sánchez Cárdenas said the Ministry of Public Health was taking charge of all the corpses at the Francisco Moscoso Puello Public Hospital and the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (Inacif). The Inacif said it did not have space, staff nor resources to deal with the overflow of dead bodies.

The health authority said the Ministry is negotiating with funeral companies to ensure the removal of the corpses from hospitals.

Read more in Spanish:
Hoy

15 April 2020