Jordan records daily high of 634 virus cases Tuesday

AMMAN — One coronavirus-related death, 634 new COVID-19 cases, including 627 local infections, were recorded on Tuesday, Health Minister Saad Jaber said during a press briefing at the National Centre for Security and Crisis Management.

The deceased was identified as a woman in her 80s. The new fatality took Jordan’s coronavirus death toll to 33, Jaber said.

The local cases comprised 273 in Amman, 29 in Karak, 120 in Balqa, 31 in Irbid, 92 in Zarqa, five in Jerash, 52 in Maan, one in Ajloun, 17 in Madaba, one in Tafileh and six in Mafraq. 

The minister noted that epidemiological investigation teams conducted 12,260 random tests nationwide, increasing the total number of tests administered since the outbreak of the crisis to 1,095,748.

Also on Tuesday, a total of 180 recovered patients left hospitals, the health minister said.

Also speaking at the press briefing, Spokesperson for the National Epidemiological Committee Nazir Obaidat said that the number of infections in the Kingdom stands at 5,045, which puts Jordan at the community transmission stage of the virus according to international standards.

He said that the community transmission is also determined by local epidemiological situation that shows an increase in the number of infections with “no identified sources and the increase of virus clusters in multiple geographical locations”. 

Obaidat also noted that the national plan for COVID-19 response had been updated and included measures to strengthen the capabilities of the Ministry of Health in detecting and isolating new cases “as quickly as possible”.

The spokesperson also said that during the community transmission stage, the public have a bigger role in maintaining their own health and the health of others, which requires increasing social awareness, calling on monitoring institutions to play their role in ensuring that government and non-government institutions adhere to safety measures.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh said that the government, following the decision to ease curbs on sealed building with positive cases, "counts on the public’s awareness and their keenness in preventing the infection".

Adaileh also stressed that the government will provide all health services necessary for cases that require emergency care.

He reminded the public of the cancellation of institutional quarantine in hotels for arrivals to the Kingdom as of Wednesday. The new arrivals from countries classified as red, yellow or green are required to observe a one-week home quarantine.

The Cabinet, during a session earlier in the day, approved amendments related to facilities granted to citizens to benefit from the national housing programme/the lands section.

The decision aims at enabling citizens to receive proper facilities to buy lands for housing purposes in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and its repercussions on various sectors, Adaileh noted.

The decision stipulates lowering the first payment from 15 per cent of the total value to 5 per cent and increasing the payment period to 10 years instead of seven, in addition to lowering the interest or murabaha rates (an Islamic finance and investment instrument) to 4 per cent in projects in Amman and to 3.5 per cent for schemes outside the capital, he added.