Ministry Of Health Virtual Media Conference on COVID-19 – Monday July 6th 2020

Key Points From The Ministry Of Health’s Virtual Media Conference on COVID-19 – Monday July 6th 2020:

– The Minister of National Security, Stuart Young, confirmed that 29 TT Nationals in Cuba (including students) and 17 TT Nationals in St. Martin (including MIC workers) are returning home today. Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL) will facilitate their flight home.

– TT students and other Nationals based in Grenada, as well as TT Nationals in the United Kingdom and Canada are next on the list to return home. TT farmers who requested to go to Canada to work on the farms there will leave on a CAL flight.

– Minister Young said people who wish to depart Trinidad and Tobago are being granted approval. This group includes students who are studying abroad. People wishing to depart T&T can email: departexemption@mns.gov.tt

– Minister Young made it clear that no approval has been given for commercial flights to resume in T&T. There is also no charter company approved to bring in Nationals. The Ministry of National Security is working with Caribbean Airlines to repatriate TT Nationals who received the necessary approval/exemption to return home.

– On a question to reopen the borders to allow Nationals to return in time for the August 10th General Election, Minister Young said Public Health experts have advised to keep the borders closed to prevent the importation of COVID-19 cases which could then overwhelm the public health system. He also reminded that taxpayers are funding the Returning Nationals’ stay at State Quarantine facilities. Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh added that officials cannot make short-term decisions until the world has flattened the COVID-19 curve. He said to do otherwise would be to disregard all the gains this country has made in managing and preventing COVID-19 in T&T.

– Minister Young said the population has gone back to some semblance of normalcy because officials are carefully managing the return of Nationals and will continue to do so.

– Minister Deyalsingh noted that there are about 200,000 new COVID-19 cases per day globally, and two countries in the Americas have recorded one million cases. Minister Deyalsingh said a recent statement from PAHO/WHO Director Dr. Carissa Etienne stated that the world must live with COVID-19 for another two years. The Health Minister said the prize for Trinidad and Tobago is to open schools in September, but any risk taken now could delay this opening.

– The following is the breakdown of Returning Nationals quarantined at various facilities in T&T:
BALANDRA: 42
CASCADIA: 14
CAURA: 24
CHANCELLOR HOTEL: 13
COUVA MEDICAL AND MULTI-TRAINING FACILITY: 141
NAPA: 21 health care workers who completed their tours
SANGRE GRANDE BROOKLYN SETTLEMENT: 31
UWI DEBE CAMPUS: 18
UWI FREEDOM HALL: 45
TACARIGUA: 40
VISION ON MISSION: 15

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