The Argentine government has issued its latest confirmation on the number of dengue victims in the country: 10,594 cases. NGOs claim, however, that the number of people affected by the disease is much higher than what the government has disclosed as the disease has spread to urban centers such as Buenos Aires.
The Health Ministry in Buenos Aires reported that “in only three days, there were 30 more suspected cases in the city, where 54 that were earlier found affected await a second confirmation.”
NGOs have called on the national government to declare a ‘national emergency’ for the epidemic. These NGOs also warned that there is an apparent manipulation or concealment of the true data of the spread of dengue in the country, as well as the absence of standards in disease prevention and control in the last 10 years.
Following the spread of the disease, manufacturers of insecticides, mosquito repellents and mosquito nets, fumigation companies, and laboratories quadrupled their sales in March, according to the local press. Professional and consumer organizations complain that some companies have hiked the prices of their products by at least 20% over the past week.
Via msnbc
