Covid-19 Dissemination: Late Contact in Local Centers in Southeastern Tocantins¹

Abstract

In 2020, the world was overwhelmed by COVID-19, which produced a severe pathology with high mortality rates. National policies to control the pandemic clashed with Brazil’s precarious health structure. While the Brazilian state of Tocantins, along with the rest of the world, saw its main cities suffer from high contamination rates, certain other localities remained free from these dynamics for a much longer period. Thus, this study set out to investigate five municipalities, all located in the southeastern corner of the state, and which were the last to be affected by the pandemic. The aim was to reflect upon the factors that delayed the arrival of the virus. A descriptive analysis was conducted, with a bibliographical review and the use of secondary data from theInstituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) database, the State Department of Planning and Budget, epidemiological bulletins from the Department of Health, indices from the agribusiness production chain and the industrial profile, produced by the Tocantins State Federation of Industries. It was concluded that certain factors contributed to this process, such as a low level of influence from urban centers, a lack of major highways and the low purchasing power of the population, which avoided greater flows resulting from the low economic attractiveness.

Keywords:
COVID-19; Tocantins; Southeast of Tocantins; Local centers; Municipal outbreak