By Leilah Bbaale
The Ministry of Health has said that burial teams are not necessary when burying people who have succumbed to COVID-19.
According to the health ministry officials, family members do not need to pay for burial teams because the bodies are disinfected and placed in body bags, which is supposed to reduce any possibility of infections.
Addressing the nation on the Covid-19 status in the country on Friday, the Minister of Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng said that there’s no need to pay for burial teams. She says the population should not spend money on teams if they can’t afford.
According to Aceng, once a patient succumbs to covid-19, the bodies are disinfected in the presence of family members at hospital mortuaries before being placed in a body bag and sealed. She adds that the body is supposed to be handed over to the families of the deceased who are at liberty to carry out the burial on their own.
Aceng however said that families that wish to use funeral services are at liberty to do so.
Burial teams have recently come under the spotlight for reportedly charging between 700,000 Shillings and 10 Million from relatives of those who succumb to COVID-19 to cover costs of disinfecting the body and facilitate burial ceremonies.
