LatinNews Daily - 14 July 2020

* Bolivian private sector lobby Confederación de Empresarios Privados de Bolivia (CEPB) has condemned the interim government’s announcement of plans to expropriate private hospitals and cemeteries in response to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Interior minister Arturo Murillo had discussed plans for “expropriation or intervention” when necessary, starting with two hospitals in the cities of Santa Cruz and Cochabamba – but following considerable backlash, Murillo was quick to clarify that “the issue of expropriation at a fair price has not been well understood”, and that any intervention would be “an alliance between [the] public and private [sectors]”, achieved through negotiations. The interim government had previously resisted calls to intervene in the country’s struggling healthcare system, for fear of alienating its private sector support base. Murillo also threatened legal action against pharmacies engaging in price speculation during the pandemic – “they have every right to profit, but not to steal”, he said.

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