Punjab HM warns of stopping financial aid to healthcare workers unwilling to take vaccine

Issuing a warning to health care workers in Punjab, state Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu on Monday said medical professionals and healthcare workers who do not get vaccinated against COVID-19 will bear their cost of treatment and will not be allowed to avail quarantine or isolation leaves.

"Healthcare workers who do not get vaccinated, despite being given repeated opportunities and in case they get the infection later, they will have to bear the cost of their treatment and they will not be allowed to avail quarantine or isolation leave," Balbir said.

Expressing concern on the low rate of inoculation in Punjab, the state government has taken serious note of reports that some healthcare professionals choosing not to get vaccinated while highlighting the spike in COVID-19 cases in Punjab. 

"Matter of concern that cases are rising for 3-4 days. Have asked healthcare workers to get vaccinated as they're on the frontline. Don't want to lose any other health worker to COVID. If cases rise anything is possible. We've to take precautions from our end," the Punjab health minister said.

According to PTI, six more people died from coronavirus in Punjab on Sunday as 348 fresh cases surfaced, taking the infection count to 178,459. So far, 5,754 people have died from the infection in the state. As a result of the upswing in fresh cases, the number of active cases has also risen to 3,019. The state has witnessed 169,686 recoveries and a total of 48,50,347 samples have been collected for testing so far in the state. Punjab has recorded daily cases between 200 and 350 for the last several days, according to the state health department.

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86% of the total caseload in the country is concentrated in five states namely Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Punjab.

India's cumulative vaccination crosses over 1.11 crores.

1,11,16,854 Covid vaccine doses have been given as per the provisional report. This includes 63,97,849 health care workers who have taken the first dose 9,67,852 health care workers who have taken the second dose, along with 37,51,153 frontline workers who were administered the first dose, the Health Ministry said.

(With inputs from Agencies)

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