SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 29 March 2024, Friday |

Araji says, “We don’t have the ability to confront Covid-19”

The Head of the Parliamentary Health Committee MP Assem Araji said that “the Health Committee held a meeting today in the presence of Minister of Public Health Firas Abiad, to discuss the surge in number of Covid-19 infections.”

Araji said: “Abiad stressed that hospitals’ readiness is vital amid this situation, as the number of infections is increasing dramatically, and we were aware that the Minister has tried previously to raise its readiness.”

He added: “There are 913 beds, 369 of which are intensive care, and the occupancy rate at hospitals has reached 76 percent, a percentage that raises our concerns. Stricter preventive measures should be imposed because it would reduce the rate of infections and hospital admissions, even though inoculated people must take preventive measures.”

Araji stated that “Following the holidays last year, the number of infections surged dramatically, and the rate of new cases ranged between 1,600 and 1,900 per day, that’s why we do not want to reach the same situation this year.”

Araji wished that the minister along with all concerned ministries, including the Ministry of Tourism, as well as the Ministry of Interior, be strict in implementing the preventive measures.”

He explained that the country has a sufficient number of vaccines, and the number of vaccinated people reached 150,000 last week. “This is a good number, and we must continue as there is no excuse for not being vaccinated.”

Araji added:  “We do not want to experience an outbreak in infections similar to what happened last year, and we do not have the ability to confront Covid-19, and vaccines are available.”

Araji said: “We discussed the medicines file especially that there is shortage and outages in some type of medicines, including cancer and incurable diseases medicines. We asked the minister to be tough with pharmaceutical companies which don’t have any excuse not to distribute medicines in the market.”

He stressed that there is outages in some medicines which must be available as soon as possible, and the Council of Ministers is supposed to intervene to solve this matter. “A solution must be found to fund the health sector, and I hope that people abide by the procedures during the holidays, and I say that we have a shortage in nurses, as 2,000 nurses have left their jobs in hospitals.”

    Source:
  • Sawt Beirut International