Gov’t signs agreements to secure vaccines to cover 23% of population — Obeidat

MPs review gov’t measures to deal with pandemic

By JT - Feb 07,2021 - Last updated at Feb 07,2021

Health Minister Nathir Obeidat speaks during a Lower House session on Sunday (Petra photo)

AMMAN — Safe reopening of various sectors is part of a comprehensive strategy to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes securing the necessary vaccines for the biggest percentage of residents, Health Minister Nathir Obeidat said on Sunday.

During a Lower House session dedicated to discuss the pandemic and its health and economic repercussions, Obeidat said that the implementation of the national vaccination plan aims to preserve the Kingdom's health security as an integral part of comprehensive security, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The minister noted that the government had signed binding agreements to secure vaccines enough for 23 per cent of the population and work is under way to increase this percentage to inoculate three million people.

He also reviewed the phases of the emergence of the virus since March at the form of clusters and failure to curb its spread until reaching community transmission in mid-September, which necessitated changing the rules applied to deal with the pandemic.

The government increased the capabilities of hospitals, Obeidat said, noting that establishing four field hospitals increased the number of isolation beds at public and Royal Medical Services hospitals from 1,325 to 2,263.

Also, the number of ICU beds was increased from 306 to 542 and ventilators from 263 to 471, the minister said, adding that the four field hospitals cost JD16 million in addition to JD8 million for preparing them.

He also noted that the total cost of equipment and preventive medical measures that have been applied to face the pandemic reached some JD102 million.

MPs decided to form a committee to follow up on implementing the Lower House's recommendations regarding the pandemic, Petra reported.

During the session, Deputy Prime Minister and Local Administration Minister Tawfiq Kreishan expressed the government's interest in lawmakers' remarks and its keenness on considering the recommendations once they are delivered.

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