Jordan’s Government has announced new health tourism measures have been approved. Under the measures, patients will be able to go to the Kingdom for treatment after travel restrictions aimed at tackling Coronavirus were relaxed. Patients from the Arab Gulf, Palestine, Iraq, Libya, Algeria, Sudan and Yemen as well as Cyprus will be able to submit requests on the new www.salamtak.gov.jo website. The request will then be reviewed and accepted or rejected within 24 hours,. Various procedures like cardiovascular and orthopaedic operations, kidney transplants, cochlear implants, sleeve gastrectomy and other treatments are available and a price for each procedure is given next to them. Patients will also be able to choose from one of 20 different hospitals listed on the site to receive treatment. Patients and their companions have to take a coronavirus test 72 hours before arriving in the Kingdom. Once they are on hospital grounds, they will be swabbed again and then swabbed again seven and 14 days after they arrive. In the event they test positive for Coronavirus, they will be transferred to the Prince Hamza Hospital for treatment. Information on the Health Ministry’s quarantine measures, including a 14-day isolation period for patients and their companions at hospitals or hotels as well as an additional 14-day period at a local hotel is also available. Patients have to fill out their personal information, including their full name, nationality, country of residence, phone number and e-mail and upload a copy of their passport. Only two companions per patient are allowed. Patients have to state whether they are continuing their treatment, or if this is their first time applying, upload a copy of their medical report and choose a hospital and mode of transport which can be land or air. The hospital where a patient will receive treatment will take care of transport procedures and provide vehicles for the patient and their companions to get to and from the airport or land borders as well as the hotel. They also have to submit an entry visa, if applicable, on behalf of a patient via the website. If the visa is approved, the patient will receive an electronic notice. The hospital will provide a list of 3, 4 or 5-star hotels for patients to choose from to spend the mandatory quarantine period or remain in the Kingdom after the treatment period. A special electronic payment feature for the site is being developed so users can benefit from prepayment discounts. There is an FAQ tab which highlights the Government-launched mobile Aman application which tracks Coronavirus cases in the Kingdom and their contacts. Patients can call the Health Ministry’s hotline at 0096265004545 for enquiries or complaints. Full story
