Santo Domingo.- The Public Health Ministry has started a rodent elimination campaign in several barrios, with the aim of preventing further leptospirosis cases.

The total number of people affected by the disease, which is spread by exposure to rodent urine, is now reported at 83, with 15 dead, according to official figures.

Yesterday 75,000 doses of rat poison had been distributed in several neighborhoods in the capital like La Ciénega, Los Guandules, Los Tres Brazos and other vulnerable areas.

The campaign objective is to hand out 1.5 million doses in 500,000 homes across the country. In order to achieve this, the Public Health authorities are working with 300 armed forced members, as well as 100 of their staff.

Jesús Martínez, president of the Club Marcelino Vega in La Ciénega, asked the ministry to extend the program to colmados and other food distribution centers so that they maintain rigorous hygiene standards and don’t contribute to the spread of leptospirosis.