Prognosis

Virus Rages in South America With Governments Grasping for Clues

  • Uruguay, Chile make gains in virus fight, but Brazil hard hit
  • Hodgepodge policies, poverty complicate efforts to slow spread

Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro

Photographer: Andressa Anholete/Getty Images South America
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From mask rules that are a hodgepodge to inconsistent social distancing, South America’s response to the novel coronavirus has been all over the map.

While the actual scope of the disease is unknown because of overall low testing, there are clear losers and a few early winners in a region that was already in bad shape heading into the crisis.