It was recently revealed that Costa Rica received a senior official from the United Nations (UN), who was infected with COVID-19. This is a humanitarian measure carried out through agreements previously established between the Tico nation and the UN.
It is important to know that the costs of transportation, hospitalization and treatment are fully covered by the United Nations. And the patient is confined in a private clinic within the country. In which all the necessary sanitary measures were taken for admission.
“This health evacuation plan has been established by the country team of the United Nations System in Costa Rica with the network of private hospitals present in our territory,” the Foreign Ministry reported in a statement.
As reported by the Minister of Health, Daniel Salas, the revenues for this special health care will not be made in a large scale. “It is not that we are going to receive patients openly. They are specific United Nations officials who are going to have a transport bubble to give that humanitarian aid. We are not opening the border to bring patients with Covid-19,” said the Minister.
In addition, Salas added, “We will not be receiving these people in a massive way. These are specific cases that are previously coordinated and with rigorous established sanitary measures”.
Costa Rica stands out for its good management of the COVID-19 Pandemic
“Costa Rica has been recognized by the United Nations as one of the countries in Latin America and the Caribbean with the necessary health infrastructure to attend to any case of humanitarian evacuation within the context of COVID-19,” indicates the Foreign Ministry.
In the same way, the statement by the Foreign Ministry highlighted: “The strength of the national health system, both publicly and privately, recognized by the international community and in particular by the United Nations, and proof of this is the designation of Costa Rica as one of the destinations for the special sanitary evacuation plan.”
Health and education instead of weapons
Since the abolition of its army, Costa Rica has allocated its defense budget to reinforce both the education of its citizens and its health system. That is why today it has a universal health system of the highest quality in Latin America, such as the National Social Security System (CCSS).
CCSS covers approximately 95% of the population. This has contributed to the life expectancy in the country reaching 79.6 years and being one of the highest in the world, as indicated by the World Health Organization.
Without a doubt, Costa Rica is a small country that has made a great effort to keep the spread curve for COVID-19 controled. Taking strict measures from the first confirmed case of Coronavirus. Thanks to this, today it has been shown that with the necessary measures implemented, it is possible to advance towards a new relative normality, and together overcome this Pandemic that has ravaged the entire planet.
