Rome, Nov. 17, (dpa/GNA) – Calabria, one of the Italian regions worst affected by the coronavirus pandemic, was given a new health manager on Monday after two previous incumbents resigned in little more than a week.
Eugenio Gaudio, former dean of Rome’s Sapienza University, was picked for the post of Calabria Health Commissioner, government sources said after a cabinet meeting in Rome.
Gaudio will be supported by Gino Strada, founder of the Italian medical charity Emergency, the sources said.
The pair are to replace Giuseppe Zuccatelli, who quit earlier Monday after heavy criticism over a video circulating on social media in which he suggests face masks are not needed against the coronavirus.
Zuccatelli had been in the job only since November 7, when he took over from a previous commissioner, Saverio Cotticelli, who was fired after giving a car-crash TV interview.
Speaking to RAI public television, Cotticelli admitted that Calabria did not have a coronavirus emergency plan, and gave the impression of discovering during the interview that it was up to him to draft it.
Calabria is one of seven Italian regions or provinces under lockdown due to a severe virus situation. Even though it has relatively few infections, its health system is struggling to deal with them.
GNA