The COVID-19 pandemic in Venezuela was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first two cases in Venezuela were confirmed on 13 March 2020; the first death was reported on 26 March. However, the first record of a patient claiming to have symptoms of coronavirus disease dates back to 29 February 2020, with government officials suspecting that the first person carrying the virus could have entered the country as early as 25 February.
Venezuela is particularly vulnerable to the wider effects of the pandemic because of its ongoing socioeconomic and political crisis causing massive shortages of food staples and basic necessities, including medical supplies. The mass emigration of Venezuelan doctors has also caused chronic staff shortages in hospitals.
To prevent the spread of the disease into Venezuela, the governments of Brazil and Colombia temporarily closed their borders with Venezuela. The Colombian government had placed 1 October as a tentative date for reopening the border.
In February 2021, Venezuela started vaccinations with the Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine and a vaccine produced by the Chinese company Sinopharm. It aimed to vaccinate 70 percent of the population by the end of 2021. An academic survey found that by the 1 September 2021, 10% of the Venezuelan population was fully vaccinated. By the end of 2021, Venezuela had administered 30,049,714 doses of vaccine, about 52.7% of the country's population.
Background
In January, Venezuela's Ministry of Popular Power for Health announced that the Rafael Rangel National Institute of Hygiene (Spanish: Instituto Nacional de Higiene Rafael Rangel) in Caracas would act as the observatory for non-influenza respiratory viruses, including coronaviruses in humans. It is the only health institution in the country with the ability to diagnose respiratory viruses and to operate logistically across the 23 states, the Capital District and the Federal Dependencies of Venezuela.
In February, the Venezuelan government announced that the country had imposed epidemiological surveillance, restrictions and a plan to detect individuals with COVID-19 at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, Venezuela's main international airport. They said Venezuela would receive diagnostic kits for the virus strain from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
Timeline
Timeline of 2020
March
Venezuela reported its first official cases of coronavirus disease on 13 March 2020. However, several days earlier a suspected case became controversial due to the state treatment of a whistleblower. On 7 March, Fe y Alegría reported that a suspicious medical case was registered in Zulia: a 31-year-old who was not from Venezuela was examined at the Pedro Iturbe Hospital and later transferred to the University Hospital of Maracaibo. The patient had apparent symptoms and was discharged days later. The state governor, Omar Prieto, asked the Public Ministry to investigate a University of Zulia professor, Freddy Pachano, for bringing attention to the suspected case in the state, and the NGO Espacio Público condemned Prieto for ordering such an investigation. Nicolás Maduro declared a ban on protests on 12 March before cases were confirmed in Venezuela to prevent the spread of the outbreak, as well as a ban on flights from Europe and Colombia.
The first cases, two on 13 March, were registered in the state of Miranda. Colombian president Iván Duque closed the border with Venezuela effective from the next day. On 14 March, the official number of cases rose by eight (to ten), and had spread across four states (Miranda, Apure, Aragua, and Cojedes). Communication Minister Jorge Rodríguez announced that flights from Panama and the Dominican Republic to the country would be suspended for 30 days, beginning on 15 March.
Stay-at-home orders were announced on 15 March, when the country registered another seven cases, and introduced the next day across six states and the Caracas area. The orders were dubbed "collective quarantine"; there are exceptions for transportation, health, and delivery of food. It was on the first day of the quarantine across six states, 16 March, that Argentina's ambassador in Venezuela, Eduardo Porretti, tested positive for the virus, and Nicolás Maduro announced that sixteen new cases were confirmed, bringing the total to 33. Based on this, Maduro extended the quarantine to the entire country.
When Venezuela went into lockdown on 17 March, authorities in Brazil partially closed their border with Venezuela. Brazilian Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta had urged closure of the border due to Venezuela's collapsing health system. Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez announced three more cases the same day. In the afternoon, a patient that would later test positive for coronavirus fled from a hospital in Propatria, in west Caracas.
On 18 March, Delcy Rodríguez reported that the numbers of cases had not changed since the previous day. By 21 March, the government reported 70 confirmed cases in the country.
Economic measures to deal with the consequences of the pandemic were announced on 22 March, along with seven more cases. Rent and credit payments were suspended for six months, accompanied by compensation in local currency for property owners and medium-sized businesses. The measures also extended a 2015 policy that prevents companies from firing employees through December 2020. The government said that no household would have their utilities cut off. The government also took over payment of wages for workers in non-essential companies that were not operating during the national emergency and gave workers in the informal sector a one-off social security payment.
The first confirmed death from the disease was announced on 26 March. Another death was reported the next day. Also on 27 March, Delcy Rodríguez met with Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Keith Rowley, with the meeting focused on the strategy being deployed in both countries to combat the pandemic. There was also controversy on this day when NGO PROVEA revealed that around ninety people coming from Cúcuta, Colombia, were forcefully isolated on 25 March by the National Guard in Barqusimeto, Lara, without food or proper sanitary conditions.
April
Information Minister Jorge Rodríguez first reported that there were more recoveries than new infections in Venezuela on 11 April. Delcy Rodríguez and Nicolás Maduro announced an extension of the national quarantine and state of alarm for 30 days.
After a sudden rise of the number of cases in Margarita Island, Nicolás Maduro announced a curfew the entire state of Nueva Esparta on 19 April. 41 of the cases at the time, were related to Roberto Vahlis Baseball Academy. Some of its member had just arrived from Dominican Republic by plane.
A 29-year-old man was killed by two gunshots to the head during riots in Upata, Bolívar state, caused by food and fuel shortages that were exacerbated by the lockdown since mid-March. The message "Murió por hambre" (He died of hunger) was written in chalk besides the pool of blood that he left. Colectivos participated in the police operation to repress the riots, who used their motorcycles despite the fuel shortages. At least two people were injured and thirty others were arrested.
May
Delcy Rodríguez reported the first cases of COVID-19 in Amazonas and Carabobo on 10 May. That left Delta Amacuro as the only unaffected state at that moment.
Nicolás Maduro, on 12 May, extended the lockdown for 30 more days. The restrictions to national flights were also extended 30 days by the national aeronautics institute INAC (Spanish: Instituto Nacional de Aeronáutica Civi).
The first patient with COVID-19 in Delta Amacuro was reported on 13 May. As of that date, all states of Venezuela have reported at least a case of COVID-19.
In mid-May, Maracaibo reports a major outbreak of cases related to Las Pulgas, a popular market. The market was closed.
After 34 days without a death report, a new deceased by COVID-19 was reported on 26 May.
June
The easing of the lockdown started on 1 June, with gyms and shopping centers opening. Schools, courts, and bars remain closed.
As of 9 June, the Venezuelan government had reduced re-emigrations to 400 per day, three days a week, a reduction of 80% from previous levels.
The state of alarm was extended a third time for an additional month on 12 June.
Opposition and health care workers in Maracaibo announced on the fourth week of June that hospitals in the city were filled and dozens of doctors and nurses were infected. William Barrientos, a surgeon and opposition legislator, said that 40 health workers were infected with the virus. A nurse died in the Maracaibo Military Hospital. The authorities enabled 20 small and midsized hotels in Maracaibo to treat patients. Measures were increased in Zulia, Caracas, and eight other states.
July
Diosdado Cabello, vice-president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela and president of the pro-government Constituent National Assembly announced he tested positive for COVID-19 on 9 July.
Tareck El Aissami, the Minister of Petroleum and Omar Prieto, the Governor of Zulia also tested positive on 10 July.
A member of the National Constituent Assembly and the Governor of the Capital District, Darío Vivas tested positive for COVID-19 on 19 July.
August
Venezuela Minister of Communication and Information Jorge Rodríguez tested positive for COVID-19 on 13 August. On the same day, Darío Vivas died of COVID-19 at the age of 70.
Timeline of 2021
February
In February 2021, Venezuela started vaccinating health care workers with the Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine and started using a vaccine produced by the Chinese company Sinopharm. It aimed to vaccinate 70 percent of the population by the end of 2021.
March
In March 2021, Juan Guaidó and the opposition National Assembly approved 30 million dollars to import Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccines. Delcy Rodríguez announced that permits for its use would not be conceded. Venezuela decided not to approve use of the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine when several European countries suspended their vaccination programmes due to concerns over possible side-effects.
October
School children and university students started going back to their classes in October 2021. The government claimed that 56% of the population had been vaccinated but Johns Hopkins University reported that less than 22% of the population had been fully vaccinated. Venezuelans could get vaccinated from the age of 11.
Measures
Executive response
On 12 March, Nicolás Maduro declared a public health emergency in the country and suspended all inbound flights from Europe and Colombia for 30 days. He also announced that public gatherings were to be suspended and that the government would be evaluating whether or not to suspend flights from other regions in the coming weeks. According to Maduro, there had been 30 suspected cases in Venezuela, but these had all tested negative.
After the first cases in the country were confirmed, Vice-president Delcy Rodríguez instructed all passengers of the 5 March and 8 March flights of Iberia 6673 to immediately enter into a mandatory preventive quarantine because two passengers tested positive.
Rodríguez announced that all classes would be suspended at public and private schools from Monday 16 March until further notice, while Néstor Reverol announced that the government would provide border control authorities with face masks, gloves and thermometers, without mentioning supplies for citizens and hospitals. Reverol also announced that the operational control of all the police forces would be transferred to the Armed Forces in order to coordinate the action and contingency plan.
On 14 March, authorities arrested two people for spreading false information about the virus, recording a video about fake cases in Los Teques. SUDEBAN, the government's department related to banks and financial institutions, announced the suspension of banking activities, effective from 16 March.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López announced that, effective from 16 March, the Armed Forces would control access to the six states and the Capital District declared by Nicolás Maduro to be in quarantine.
On 16 March, Maduro reversed the country's official position against the International Monetary Fund (IMF), asking the institution for US$5 billion to combat the pandemic, a first during Maduro's presidency; he has been a critic of the institution. The IMF also has had conflicts with the Venezuelan government in the past, as Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chávez had pledged to cut ties with the fund in 2007, and the IMF suspended US$400 million in special drawing rights during the Venezuelan presidential crisis in 2019. The IMF rejected the deal as it was not clear, among its member states, on who it recognizes as Venezuela's president, Nicolás Maduro or Juan Guaidó. According to a report by Bloomberg, the Maduro administration also tried to request aid of $1 billion from the IMF after the first request was denied.