Chile's health ministry has announced 373 new #COVIDー19 cases, taking the total to 3,404.

Mortality rate remains low for now, but with the winter flu season fast approaching and capacity stretched (despite acquisition of emergency ward space), the worst could yet be to come. https://twitter.com/ministeriosalud/status/1245700965711265792

The lurking anomaly in Chile is the unresolved socio-political crisis bubbling away beneath this. Credibility is incredibly low for the political class and lots of actors have an eye on the constitutional referendum in Oct - putting ambition aside is crucial to achieve consensus

Other LatAm-wide factors also apply: 30% informal labour in Chile (no chance of teleworking, income lost), social security insufficient (at best - and totally unprepared for a crisis of these proportions), dense urban populations (generations living together in close quarters)

One factor in Chile that is underplayed is debt. Government adopted a definition of 'vulnerable' in order to receive support during crisis, but it did not consider the vast debts many people hold (and will need to continue to service, often without income) to pay for basic needs