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COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico

The COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico was an ongoing viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It is part of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Wuhan, Hubei, China

March 13, 2020
(4 years, 1 month, 1 week and 1 day)

267,677[1]

208,091[1]

47 (current) [2]

4,152 [2]

95.4% (2,935,115) have received at least one dose
85.9% (2,642,924) have received both doses

Puerto Rico started addressing the risks of an outbreak in early 2020. The island took "some of the most dramatic steps of any U.S. jurisdiction to control the virus," and "several U.S. cities and states followed Puerto Rico's lead, imposing curfews and shutting businesses" of their own.[3] On February 29, Puerto Rico then governor Wanda Vázquez Garced established a task force to look into how the virus could affect Puerto Rico and to lay out plans on how to best mitigate any outbreaks. Given the long delays encountered by the Puerto Rico government in obtaining reasonable turnaround from the CDC test labs in Atlanta for samples submitted for testing, the local government took the position that every suspicious case was to be treated as a COVID-19 case until test results were received, and ordered patients to be kept in isolation for 14 days. On March 12, one day before the first COVID-19 case was confirmed, the governor declared a state of emergency and activated the Puerto Rico National Guard to help monitor travelers arriving to the Island through its airports and cruise ship docks. In Section 6 of the bulletin, the citizens of Puerto Rico were put on a curfew allowing them to travel out of their homes from 5AM to 9PM only for essential business such as to buy medicine or seek medical assistance, purchase groceries, or to care for a sick person.[4]


The first cases of COVID-19 in Puerto Rico were reported on March 13. They consisted of two Italian tourists and a 71-year-old cancer patient. The governor expressing concern that the curfew established on the 12th was not being followed, took stronger actions, and asked all non-essential businesses be close from March 15 through March 30.[5][6] The first death recorded was that of the 68-year-old Italian woman tourist; a few days later her husband was reported to have recovered from the virus. Testing is being conducted by veteran's hospitals, private labs, and the Puerto Rico Department of Health.[7]


As of October 24, 2021, 2,298,983 residents of Puerto Rico have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, equivalent to 88.7% of the population.[8]

Background[edit]

Recent events[edit]

When the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in Puerto Rico on March 13, Puerto Rico was still recovering from several major natural disasters, including Hurricane Maria[9] and the 2019–20 Puerto Rico earthquakes.[10][11] Increasing the risk of infections from the virus was also the strong ties between Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rican population in New York City, a city which had its first confirmed COVID-19 case on March 1,[12] making the spread of COVID-19 due to people arriving from New York a concern for Puerto Ricans.[13] It was out of this concern that on April 8 Puerto Rico governor Vázquez Garced asked the FAA to halt flights to Puerto Rico from U.S. "hot spots" including New York, New Jersey, Florida, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Illinois.[14]

Healthcare infrastructure[edit]

Like the rest of the world, including United States, Puerto Rico was unprepared for the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.[15] When compared to that of the United States, Puerto Rico's population was at higher risk of COVID-19 due to various additional factors such as an older population, higher levels of poverty, and greater dependence on public resources for access to health care. Despite these factors and shortcomings, by April 16 Puerto Rico had kept the number of COVID-19 deaths rate to less than 17% that of deaths in the United States when the two are compared on an equal per-million-inhabitants basis. A table published on April 16 by Statista, a tracker of COVID-19 cases worldwide, showed the number of deaths in Puerto Rico at 15.96 per million inhabitants while that in the United States is shown at 94.54 per million inhabitants.[16]


It is generally known that the virus is more lethal to older people[17] and Puerto Rico has a high proportion of elderly people. In July 2019, almost 21% of Puerto Rico's population was over the age of 65.[18]


Additionally, elderly residents of Puerto Rico are seven times more likely to live in poverty. Puerto Rico has about 8,194 hospital beds[19] for its (as of July 1, 2019) estimated population of 3,193,694 residents.[18]


Since 2006, when Washington stopped some special taxes incentives, Puerto Rico entered an economic crisis, lowering its fiscal budgets.[20] Puerto Rican average Medicaid enrollee receive $2,200/year against $6,700 in US States.[20] Washington periodic fiscal cliff also represent a threat to territories health care systems.[20]


Persistent underfunding, uncertainty and the natural disasters of recent years placed Puerto Rico's health care system in weaker position to face the pandemic.[20] Hospital infrastructure have aged.[20] From 2006 to 2016, the number of doctors fell from 14,000 to 9,000, while there is also a shortage of nurses.[20] There are not enough resources to prepare for disasters- the model has been to provide relief after disasters hit.[20]

Government response[edit]

2020[edit]

March 11: Caribbean Business reports that the United States Department of Health and Human Services will be awarding nearly $5.9 million to Puerto Rico to combat COVID-19.[68]


March 12: At a press conference, Governor Vázquez declares a state of emergency and activates the National Guard. She states that National Guard personnel will be stationed at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport and the Port of San Juan to screen arriving passengers for symptoms.[23] The declaration also orders all mass gatherings and events in March to be postponed or canceled. Vázquez expresses frustration at the CDC delays in testing.[28]


March 13: The Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico, Rafael Rodríguez resigns.[69] Congressperson Jenniffer González questions why Vázquez removed the Secretary during a time of crisis, stating that it could signal to federal legislators that the Puerto Rico Department of Health was incompetent and unprepared for the crisis.[70]


Puerto Rico public schools are closed for 14 days.[35]


The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico approves House Bill 2428 to amend Puerto Rico Law 180–1998 to establish unpaid emergency leave of up to 20 days for employees with a suspected or actual diagnosis of a pandemic illness.[71] The bill is awaiting consideration by the Senate of Puerto Rico.[71]


March 14: Congressperson González successfully requests the CDC to include Puerto Rico and other Territories of the United States in their digital alert system.[72] González states she will remain in Washington, D.C., despite having previously scheduled meetings in Puerto Rico, so she could work with the United States Congress.[70]


March 15: Vázquez issues an island-wide curfew through March 30 and closes all businesses not involved in food sales, medicine, or banking.[6] and the police commissioner postponed personnel training.[37]


José Aponte Hernández, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico says he would request from Jenniffer González Colón (the resident commissioner of Puerto Rico) for funds to get an old hospital up and running. They discuss the possibility of using an old hospital located on the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station located in Ceiba (a small eastern municipality), to treat persons affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico.[73]


March 19: Journalists from the Center for Investigative Journalism (CPI) in Puerto Rico state that Carmen Deseda, who had become more visible in the press since the resignation of Rafael Rodríguez Mercado, does not have the credentials to be a state epidemiologist. In response, the governor of Puerto Rico stated it is a team approach and that she supports Carmen Deseda in her role.[74] On the same day, a group of Puerto Rican scientists sign and circulate a document asking for Deseda's resignation saying she had shown a lack of competence in the past and was not up to the task of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.[75]


March 25: Acting minister of the Puerto Rico Department of Health places Encijar Hassan Ríos, an epidemiologist, in charge of leading the island's COVID-19 task force.[76]


March 27: Vázquez tightens restrictions around the curfew. Motorists are only allowed out (for emergency shopping) based on the ending digit of their car license plate: license plates ending in 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 are allowed out for emergency errands on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays, and license plates ending in odd numbers are allowed out for emergencies errands on Tuesdays, Thursdays, or Saturdays. No one is allowed out on Sundays. People who defy the new rules will be met with a fine of $5,000 or arrest.[77]


April 3: Non-essential businesses that remain open while the executive order is in place are defying the stay-at-home curfew and as a result would lose their business license.[78]


April 8: Governor Vázquez asks the Federal Aviation Administration to stop flights from "hot spots" states to San Juan, Puerto Rico. The states she wants to restrict travel from include New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Illinois, and Florida.[14] The governor also decides to review the death count based on CDC guidelines in order to avoid underreporting deaths due to COVID-19 and testing on the island lags.[13]


May 1: Governor Vázquez announced that after much back and forth, the US Treasury Department approved the proposal set forth by the Puerto Rico Department of Treasury on the distribution of $1,200 payments to eligible individuals, which is part of the CARES act signed into law on March 27, 2020, by U.S. President Donald Trump.[79]


May 4: Governor Vázquez announced that people who have recovered should donate plasma and blood, saying blood banks were in need of donations and a government official stated they were hoping to be able to soon provide a glimpse into the number of recovered from COVID-19.[80]


May 5: Jessica Irizarry from the Department of Health explained that each of the 7 regions has a regional epidemiologist and team tasked with tracking, investigating the cases in Puerto Rico. Irizarry stated they have done contact tracing on 2000 positive cases.[81]


June 8: Investigative journalist reveals the government has no strategy for dealing with COVID-19 in elderly care homes. Part of this issue was that the government had failed to use the thousands of test they received from the federal government.[82]


June 11: Governor Vázquez announced the reopening of Puerto Rico's sectors except for external tourism, after an 88-day lockdown.[83]


July 16: Governor Vázquez again ordered the closure of bars, gymnasiums, and movie theaters.[84]


August 19: Governor Vázquez announced the closure of restaurants without outside seating arrangements and limited business capacity to 25% after a rise in COVID-19 cases. A lockdown would be in effect Sundays limiting activities to essential services.


December 4: A lockdown is ordered for every Sunday from December 7, 2020, to January 7, 2021.[85]

2021[edit]

March 10: Governor Pedro Pierluisi states the low number of new COVID-19 cases allows for the reopening of schools in some of Puerto Rico's municipalities. By early March, almost 100 schools (of 858) are allowed to return to in-person learning as long as specific safety protocols are put in place.[86]


March 31: A fine of $100 for not wearing a mask is implemented. A greater police presence is seen in tourist areas. A curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. is being strictly enforced and more than a dozen arrests are made.[87]


A mass vaccination event is coordinated by the Department of Health. Held in San Juan, about 5,000 people are vaccinated in 15 hours with the single-dose Janssen COVID-19 vaccine.[88]


April 12: Stringent measures continue including closing business that do not follow the law with regards to COVID-19 safety measures. Fifteen businesses in San Juan were closed for this reason in April, 2021.[89]


April 26: A negative test will be required starting April 28, of tourists arriving in Puerto Rico, within 48 hours of arrival. Travelers who do not comply will be fined $300. This is in response to an increase in positive cases.[90]


July 3: The Department of Sports and Recreation suspended all restrictions on teams practicing, nonetheless the agency requires all players and organizers be vaccinated.[91]


July 27: The department of health announced a new mask mandate and raises the price of fines for not complying to $500.[92]


July 29: Governor Pierluisi announces an executive order requiring all government employees to be vaccinated. The order enters into effect on August 16.[93]


August 11: Governor Pierluisi orders that employees and clients of restaurants, bars, and movie theaters must be vaccinated.[94] The government incorporated the "Vacu ID" feature into an existing driver's app to ensure residents can demonstrate proof of vaccination. Within a week over 300,000 residents had created a Vacu ID.[95]


August 19: Pierluisi announced the vaccine mandate for employees and clients would be expanded to cover supermarkets, gasoline stations, casinos, gymnasiums, spas, and day care centers. The mandate enters into effect on August 30.[96]


August 27: The municipality of Vieques declared a state of emergency, over a rise in cases, which imposed a 11pm curfew and cancelled all events on municipal properties such as stadiums.[97]


August 30: A vaccine mandate for employees and contract workers of the Capitol of Puerto Rico was announced and it would enter into effect on September 17.[98]

2022[edit]

March 2022: The governor announced the face mask mandate, vaccine mandate for employees and vaccine mandate for entering businesses would be lifted. Schools, hospitals, and care homes would still require the use of face mask.[99][100]

2020 in Puerto Rico

Bill Scher. Politico Magazine. 1 April 2020. Accessed 28 April 2020.

Coronavirus vs. Governors: Ranking the Best and Worst State Leaders: And none of them are Andrew Cuomo.

Archived March 14, 2020, at the Wayback Machine from the Puerto Rico Department of Health (in Spanish)

Coronavirus information

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico Facebook page with daily COVID-19 numbers map image

on Facebook

Puerto Rico Medical Task Force COVID-19