As part of efforts to help mitigate the spread on the deadly Coronavirus in the country, Allianz Life Insurance has announced free life insurance cover worth GHS8.4 million to medical professionals in three hospitals in the country who may come into direct contact with people infected with the highly infectious deadly COVID-19.
The selected health institutions include 37 Military Hospital, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in the Greater Accra region, and the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in the Ashanti region.
Speaking to Citi Business News, at a ceremony to present the package to the management of the 37 Military Hospital, Chief Executive Officer of Allianz Life Insurance, Gideon Ataraire stated that the gesture is to acknowledge the sacrifices these professionals make in their quest to ensure the infection is brought under control.
“We recognize that the government has put in place a number of measures to ensure that this outbreak is contained. For us at Allianz Life, we looked at what the government has done and decided to add to these measures by taking care of these professionals at the frontline of this fight in case of any eventuality,” he said.
The package covers 112 medical doctors and 620 nurses who work in the emergency sections and other key departments in the three health institutions. The 12-month cover insures the medical professionals against incidents that may happen over the period regardless of whether it is COVID-19 related or not.
These professionals are expected to receive compensation in the event of any incident that renders them unable to perform their duties while their families are assured of compensation from Allianz Life Insurance in the event of death.
Commanding Official of the Hospital, Col. A. G. Bugri, receiving the package on behalf of the management of the 37 Military Hospital said the insurance package would serve as additional motivation for medical professionals who happen to be at the frontline of COVID-19.
“This is a very kind gesture because we at the frontline are worried about what happens to us. You can get infected and when that happens and you know there is an insurance package to remedy such a tragedy, you are very happy.This emboldens us to go forward and our families would know if anything happens, there is something to lean on,” he said.
As at Saturday March 21, 2020, Ghana has recorded 21 cases of people who have tested positive for COVID-19, and has identified over 400 contacts who have been exposed to the disease, according to the Ghana Health Service.
Effects of COVID-19
Since the outbreak of COVID 19, business activities globally have witnessed a dip, running into huge financial losses. The airline industry is one of the hardest hit with airlines losing billions of dollars due to a huge drop in bookings. Other sectors that are beginning to also feel the brunt of the outbreak is the hospitality and tourism sector.
Health experts warn of more possible COVID-19 cases – Oppong Nkrumah
Earlier this week, Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said Ghana is likely to record more cases of COVID-19 with the next two weeks.
He said predictions by health experts are that the number of cases of the pandemic will rise within the above mentioned period before a likely decline of the spread of the disease.
“The health experts tell us that the next two weeks are critical in determining whether or not we will get significant community spread. They tell us that, the general theory of pandemic management is that, often the numbers are likely to go up a bit before the situation gets better. Therefore, they are bracing for the possibility of some limited recordings of more cases in the medium term but they continue to assure us that, the systems they are putting together are such that we are able to control it and hold this virus in check,” he said.
Global Statistics
The 2019 novel coronavirus, officially named as COVID-19 by the WHO, has spread to more than 170 countries, prompting the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare the disease as a pandemic.
Confirmed novel coronavirus cases have crossed 200,000, while more than 8,000 deaths have been reported across the world, as Europe becomes the new epicentre of the disease. Approximately 60% of the global COVID-19 cases are currently outside China, the original source of the disease.
