Peru Medical Workers Demand Better Pay, Working Conditions as COVID-19 Cases Soar

Images of the 125 doctors who have died during the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru are displayed outside Peru's Medical College (CMP) in Lima on Aug. 13, 2020.

Health care workers in Peru held a demonstration Thursday demanding better pay and working conditions as more of their colleagues become infected with the coronavirus.

Members of medical workers’ unions appealed for government help during a rally outside the Health Ministry.

The workers’ plea for aid came on the same day President Martin Vizcarra unveiled an obelisk at the Medical College of Peru in honor of 125 doctors who have died from the coronavirus.

The observance occurred on the same day Peru marked a milestone, surpassing 500,000 coronavirus cases, with Latin America’s highest fatality rate.