Velacio Vicuña began to cough incessantly and felt feverish. But the tire salesman avoided getting a test for the new coronavirus, fearing that if it was positive, soldiers would take him from his home and force him to stay at one of the mandatory isolation centers that the Venezuelan government has set up for people with COVID-19. The notorious conditions at those centers, which include hospitals, repurposed gyms and abandoned hotels, have prompted many people who experience symptoms to avoid testing, analysts say. That’s making it harder to contain the virus in a country where the health system has already been damaged by years of shortages and mismanagement. Dr. Jose Manuel Olivares, a physician and opposition congressman, described the mandatory centers as a “repressive measure” copied from China — though without China’s resources — that has failed to contain outbreaks in Venezuela. The number of […]