In case you missed it, here are the Key Points from today’s Virtual Media Conference:
- Minister of Health, Terrence Deyalsingh started off by sharing some words of appreciation for Nurses on International Nurses Day and thanking them for their hard work and service.
- Minister Deyalsingh also gave an update on the status of Covid-19 in T&T.
Samples Submitted: 2358
Unique Patients tested: 2016
Repeat tests: 342
Community Testing: 738 (all of which came back negative)
Persons that tested Positive: 116
Fatalities: 8
Persons Discharged: 107
One patient remains hospitalized at the Caura facility in a stable condition.
- The Health Minister stated that individuals who were making demands for small businesses to open and not wearing masks were making a life and death decision. Minister Deyalsingh went on to say that the Attorney General is currently looking into the possibility of making the mask requirement law.
- Minister of Finance, Colm Imbert, provided an update on Government’s expenditure on COVID-19 relief:
-To date, the Ministry of Social Development has spent $98.1M on pandemic-related relief.
-Projected total to the end of September is $400M.
-The Office of the Prime Minister has approved $10M to Faith Based Organizations to provide relief to the needy. Projected total to the end of September is $30M.
-To date, the Ministry of Agriculture has spent $1.3M on pandemic-related relief. Projected total to the end of September is $10.7M.
-To date, the Ministry of National Security has spent $3.7M on COVID-19 measures. Expected expenditure is $8.3M.
-To date, the Ministry of Health has spent $55M on COVID-19 measures.
-The Minister indicated that it was difficult to predict an exact figure for the Ministry of Health’s expenditure but the figure may come up to $387M.
- Minister Imbert stated that Government’s total Covid-19 expenditure to date is $934M, with a projected total of $6B.
- Minister Imbert said that his Ministry has spent $12M so far on salary relief grants. With an expected figure of over $400M. He also stated that 12,000 people have received said relief grants so far.
- Minister Imbert also said that $300M has been allocated to help small and medium enterprises remain in business and keep people employed and $700M in VAT refunds has already been paid out to provide relief to those businesses.
- Minister of Communications, Donna Cox delivered a very important message to the business community. She urged business owners to place emphasis on health over wealth as this is the only way we will see the economy return to a place of strength.
