After the wave of criticisms and calls to end his job, the Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health sent a letter to the outgoing CEO Bar Good Sign • "Between this apology and the plethora of defamation and attacks on me in recent days, gaping abyss"

• Prof. Itamar Grotto (right) and Teddy Sagi

  Photo: 

  Yossi Seliger

Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health Prof. Itamar Grotto on Friday apologized for the exoneration from the isolation given to billionaire Teddy Sagi, which triggered a wave of harsh criticism of Grotto and even an opening in a procedure that could lead to his dismissal.

The full letter

In a letter he sent to outgoing Health Ministry chief Moshe Bar Seaman, suggesting this week that Grotto would be forced to resign, Prof. Grotto wrote: "During my many years as a public servant in the Israeli medical system, it was partly my decision to make a huge range of decisions in countless areas of public health in Israel and even In the world. In retrospect, I am sure some of my decisions were right and justified, and some, unfortunately - no. Although medicine is a science - it has never been and will not be an exact science. 

"Many decisions I made as a public servant who are first and foremost - a doctor, will not always be clear and understandable to non-physicians, and some will not always be true. In any case where my judgment was wrong, and a decision that followed was wrong: I apologize. The latter we are in the midst of an exhausting and arduous daily war with the new Corona virus and maintaining public health, to which I, myself, along with the other dedicated Ministry of Health workers, are engaged, and we do so around the clock. 

"As part of managing Corona, countless decisions are needed in a timely response and countless areas and issues in which the Ministry of Health is involved. It is inevitable that, in this day-to-day, complex framework, imperfect decisions are sometimes made. And, for the sake of doubt, this specific case has also become clear. In retrospect, I was misled about the reason for the visit, and did not know, and to this day I do not know if the matter came up for discussion before you came to me and you denied the approval. But - between this apology and the myriad of slander and assaults against me in recent days, I open abyss and so I will detail in these letters. "

Prof. Grotto added: "I do not know Teddy Sagi I have nothing to do with Teddy Sagi, Teddy Sagi never contacted me for approval, and I certainly did not receive any consideration on any issue which is from Teddy Sagi or related parties. The state.

"Speaking to me was not about a party - but about a family event. The approval given to Teddy Sagi was not permission to be exempted from isolation, but relief from the isolation conditions, which is a matter for the Ministry of Health.

"The permit is issued with the condition of maintaining the complete isolation conditions, except the permit to go to a family event. The relief in the isolation conditions is in accordance with the Ministry of Health policies and procedures and in no way is a concern for public health. Some of these conditions appear in the email I sent, and to my surprise, The media, for some reason, came only part of that email, not the full email. "

More on:

• The billionaire affair and exemption: Prof. Itamar Grotto may have followed the regulations

• Shaking at the top of the Ministry of Health: Good sign hints that Grotto will be forced to resign immediately

• Grotto affair reveals: Murky relationship at the top of the health care system

In a letter, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health stated that "Teddy Sagi arrived on a private plane from Cyprus, without fear of exposure to other people on the way; He came from a state that all refers to as a green state. He reported being ill in Corona and recovering from it, hence we cannot catch up. Based on these facts - I decided to approve the exception for him, as stated in a manner consistent with the firm's policy.

"Teddy Sagi underwent a PCR test prior to his departure from Cyprus, and the test was negative. Another negative PCR test was performed on the day before returning to Cyprus. He also underwent a serologic test for the antibody against the Corona virus, which was found to be positive. Indeed, the virus has been exposed in the past, and given the elapsed time and the negative PCR testing, it can be said unequivocally that he could not risk infecting any of his encounters. "