MANILA, Philippines — Five Filipinos in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have died due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Philippine Ambassador Adnan V. Alonto said Monday.
In an online Laging Handa public briefing, Alonto also reported that at least 119 Filipinos in the Middle Eastern country have been infected by the infectious respiratory illness.
The diplomat, however, assured that the hospitalization of COVID-19 patients in Saudi Arabia is free.
“Tayo’y mapalad naman dahil ang gobyerno ng Saudi Arabia ay nagptupad ng free treatment. Ang hospitalization dito for COVID-related cases are free whether they are in a public or private hospitals,” Alonto said.
(We are lucky that the Saudi government is enforcing free treatment. Hospitalization of COVID-19 related cases are free whether they are in public or private hospitals.)
The Kingdom is home to the largest Filipino community in the Middle East with over 900,000 documented workers based on 2015 data from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
To date, Saudi Arabia has a total of 17,522 confirmed COVID-19 cases according to the Johns Hopkins University and Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center, including 139 deaths and 2,357 recoveries.
The surge in the confirmed cases of COVID-19 is due to the Saudi government’s expansive mass testing, the diplomat explained.