Govt spends Tk4 lakh for an ICU Covid-19 patient: Minister

Dhaka (Dec 12, 2020): The government has spent Tk 4 lakh on an average for the patients who were undergoing treatment at Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of different hospitals after being infected by coronavirus, Health Minister Zahid Maleque said today.

“Statistic shows, our government spent Tk 4 lakh for a covid-19 patient of ICU bed while Tk1.30 lakh for a patient of general bed on an average,” the minister said this while addressing a programme at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka.

Since the outbreak of the virus in Bangladesh, the government has been providing people with adequate treatment facilities free of cost, Zahid Maleqhe said.

Claiming that the pandemic of the virus is now under control, the health minister said there are adequate stocks of emergency medicine in the government’s hand to tackle the spread of the virus.

Highlighting the pragmatic and time befitting decision of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Maleque said “Our health workers are still doing a lot in order to halt the spread of the virus.”

In line with the directives of the prime minister, the number of dedicated Covid-19 hospital and bed has been increased at appropriate time and the number of test centre has been increased up to 120 from single one, he said.

The central oxygen system has been introduced at 59 hospitals at different parts of the country within a very short time to facilitate coronavirus treatment, he said.

Around 2.50 crore people across the country are being served with telemedicine facilities amid the pandemic of coronavirus as a result the death and infection rate of the virus came down, Maleque said while addressing the programme.