The government has announced that it will bear the cost incurred by Ghanaian citizens who test positive for COVID-19 on arrival into the country.
The Minister of Information-designate, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, at a press briefing yesterday revealed that the new directive forms part of an enhancement of the air travel guidance in the country.
“All arriving passengers who test positive for COVID-19 will undergo mandatory isolation and treatment at a designated health facility or isolation centre at a cost to the passengers except Ghanaian citizens,” he said.
Other amendments
He disclosed that airlines that board or disembark passengers without PCR results or with positive PCR results will be fined $3500 per passenger.
“Ghanaian residents who depart Ghana and return within one week will no longer be required to present a COVID-19 result from the country of departure. They will however undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing upon arrival in Ghana,” he said.
“Non-Ghanaian passengers may be refused entry and return to the point of embarkation at a cost to the airline, if there is no proof. Ghanaian passengers will have their passport seized, with the passenger handed by the state securities and taken in to a 14-day mandatory quarantine at the designated location at the passengers,” he added.
Some exemptions have also been made for certain groups of travelers. The Information Minister-designate said “airline crew, children under five years of age, passengers who arrive under emergency circumstances such as diverted flights will not undergo testing if they do not leave the airport or remain in isolation in their hotel. Children between the ages of 5-12 will be required to pay for testing at the new rate.”
Decline in cases at KIA
Taking his turn, the Director-General at the Ghana Health Service, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, told journalists that there had been a decline in COVID-19 cases recorded with disembarking passengers at the Kotoka International Airport.
According to him, GHS latest report indicates that 27 confirmed cases have so far been recorded at KIA since the beginning of February representing a sharp decline in cases recorded since testing began at the airport in September last year.
So far, January and December, according to reports, saw the largest cases recorded 430 and 393 respectively. However, out of the 953 passengers tested as Tuesday, only two positive cases were detected.
“We are hoping that if the trend continues we will record much lower figures than January and December,” he added.
Dr Kuma-Aboagye indicated that 157,678 tests which were carried out by the Service showed 41 per cent Ghanaians testing positive to the virus while 59 per cent non-Ghanaians also tested positive.
Also from the data of persons who tested positive, 61 per cent are males while 39 per cent are females.