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AMMAN — Following online criticism of the Health Minister’s remarks about the costs of battling the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the ministry issued a statement on Sunday stating that the numbers were disclosed “only because certain authorities asked for them”.
On Friday, Minister of Health Saad Jaber said on Jordan TV's “60 Minutes” programme that quarantining a person for possible infection with COVID-19 costs the government between JD120 and JD180 daily. The Kingdom's single confirmed case costs JD1,200 daily.
“Despite the costs, Prime Minister Omar Razzaz said: ‘Pay and do not worry about the costs’," Jaber said.
His remarks caused a surge of online criticism over the weekend, with citizens saying that “the government is trying to guilt-trip people because they were infected with a virus they had no control over”, according to Facebook user Mohammed Shawarbeh.
On Twitter, Sari Awadallah said that “it is funny that the government is trying to take credit for healthcare that is paid by us taxpayers”.
Ministry Spokesperson Adnan Ishaq said remarks to The Jordan Times that “some websites and social media pages manipulated the minister’s mention of the financial costs of quarantine and isolation to mean that the government is being condescending to its own people, when the opposite is the case”.
According to the ministry's statement on Saturday, international authorities ask for specific numbers related to the coronavirus from the Health Ministry in order to measure the economic burden on Jordan, helping both sides make decisions more effectively.
The patients’ quarantine, isolation and treatment costs include expenses incurred by doctors, nurses, treatments, medical devices and supplies, isolation materials and protective suits for personnel in contact with quarantined individuals, among others.
“These numbers are not reflected in financial bills. Rather, they are the total costs taken into account for the purposes of estimating spending, covering the lack of specialised equipment and materials supporting cadres and other unforeseen expense allocations to be counted and documented in the government’s budget,” Ishaq said.
The Jordanian government is "committed to protecting its people in this difficult period and we are working around the clock to maintain the health status in the country”, the statement concluded.
