Peru’s health minister steps down as dengue death toll jumps

LIMA  (Reuters) – Peru’s embattled health minister announced her resignation late during a speech in Congress, in the midst of a dengue outbreak already responsible for record-breaking deaths and infections.

Lawmakers had summoned Health Minister Rosa Gutierrez to face a motion to remove her from her post before she said she would resign.

President Dina Boluarte accepted the resignation and vowed to “redouble” efforts to improve public health in a post on Twitter.

The death toll from the viral outbreak has risen to 248, while reported cases have surpassed 146,000, according to official data.

Over the past week, deaths are up 24%, as cases jumped by more than 12%.

The outbreak is likely to worsen as torrential rains from El Nino climate phenomenon lead to surging populations of mosquitoes, which transmit dengue.

Last week, Boluarte declared a two-month state of emergency in most regions of the country, while most of the fatalities so far have occurred in northern Peru.

Dengue symptoms include fever, muscle and joint pain, nausea and fatigue.