Coronavirus: China to pay for Bangladeshis' treatment if infected

The Chinese government would bear the treatment cost of Bangladeshis if they get infected with the coronavirus in China, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said today. 

Until today, a total of 370 Bangladeshis in Wuhan city of China have agreed to come to Bangladesh, he told reporters after attending the closing ceremony of the Bangladesh Development Forum at the city's Bangabandhu International Conference Centre.

However, 15 other Bangladeshis said it won't be good for the country if they were infected by the virus and returned home.

"There might be some more who would like to come home. We will repatriate them as soon as the Chinese authorities allow. They are now in quarantine," Momen said.

China has informed Bangladesh that it won't allow the Bangladeshis to leave before February 6, when two weeks of quarantine expires.

He said Bangladesh has commercial planes with 419 seats, and those can be sent to China to bring back the Bangladeshis.

Asked if there were any plans for imposing a travel ban, he said there was no such plan.

So far, no Bangladeshi has been infected with the coronavirus.

If anybody is found having symptoms, they would be kept under special observation in hospitals, and the health ministry has already made the arrangements, he said.