Lebanon’s newly appointed health minister Hamad Hassan on Friday made a surprise inspection visit to the state-run hospital in Hermel.
“We have made this visit to honor our promise that we would stand by our people and they will find us with them whenever they make any appeal,” Hassan said.
“I had received a phone call from MP (Ihab) Hamadeh about the possibility of the presence of the symptoms of the H1N1 flu… There is no need to panic over the possibility of the outbreak of this disease or another disease and certainly there is no coronavirus,” the minister added.
He also noted that there is a laboratory at the state-run hospital in Beirut is equipped to “receive samples from the various Lebanese regions,” pointing out that “the antidote is present at the ministry and will be offered for free to any clinically diagnosed patients.”
“The Ministry’s epidemiological monitoring unit will conduct field surveillance,” he added.
The number of infections has risen to at least 881, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing China’s state-run broadcaster China Central Television, On top of that, the official death toll has risen to 26 from 17 yesterday thus far. The Journal also reported that the outbreak was overwhelming China’s local-area resources and hospitals.
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