Kerala Sets Up Oxygen War Room To Prevent Shortage Issues As Covid Cases Spike

Highlights:

• There are 4,19,726 active cases and the positivity rate is 27.56 percent.
• In the last ten days, over 1,000 healthcare staff in the state have been infected with the Covid-19 virus.
• CM Pinarayi Vijayan has announced that the state government has issued orders capping treatment costs for Covid patients who are admitted directly to the state.

The Kerala government has set up an “oxygen war room” and “oxygen storage centre” to meet the demands of hospitals across the state as the country’s Covid-19 situation worsens.

The Government College for Women in Thiruvananthapuram has set up an oxygen war room and an oxygen storage centre to meet the needs of hospitals in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Jacob, who is in charge of the war room, said, “The District Collector keeps an eye on us, and we work 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For the hospitals, we have a registration portal. Both government and non-government hospitals benefit from our services. We have a website where you can register. It allows hospitals in need of oxygen to register. We supply oxygen based on that. There are 20 volunteers and four doctors here to keep an eye on things. We have a buffer system and enough oxygen.”

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We provide to both govt & non-govt hospitals. We've a registration portal, hospitals in need of oxygen can register on it. According to that we provide oxygen. There are 20 volunteers & 4 doctors here who monitor this. We've buffer system, we have enough oxygen: Dr Jacob,incharge pic.twitter.com/C7MVjF9qGe

— ANI (@ANI) May 11, 2021

On Monday, Kerala reported 27,487 new Covid-19 cases and 65 deaths, bringing the total number of cases and deaths to 19,00,060 and 5,879.

According to the state government’s daily health bulletin, the total number of active cases has reached 4,19,726, with a positivity rate of 27.56 percent.

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Meanwhile, the Covid-19 virus has infected over 1,000 healthcare employees in the state in just the last ten days, according to the state Medical Officers’ body.

“The number of Covid cases in the state is rising at an unprecedented pace every day. In the state, about 4.5 lakh patients are currently undergoing treatment. A growing number of health-care staff are becoming patients is a big concern for the state. About 1,000 healthcare staff have been infected with the virus in the last ten days. Dr. TN Suresh, general secretary of the Kerala Government Medical Officers’ Association, told news agency ANI that the government should develop health resources and use them more effectively.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has announced that the state government has issued orders capping treatment costs for Covid patients admitted directly to the state.

According to Kerala’s chief minister, “Covid care is now free for Karunya Arogya Suraksha Padhati (KASP) beneficiaries and those referred from government hospitals to private hospitals accredited by the State Health Agency. Covid patients who go to private hospitals directly will be subject to the new tariff revealed today. This was necessary due to a large number of complaints of overcharging and excessive billing by such hospitals, as well as the High Court’s subsequent intervention. The rates were set after consultations with private hospitals.”