CEO of National Health Fund demands to cancel Pesach and Ramadan • "The holiday could kill people - it is a mental oversight" • He further said that the conditions for the Corona test miss the elderly

"Now a halakhic ruling or an order must cancel the Passover and Ramadan. Passover can kill people. Passover supervision is repulsive and the rabbis need to get involved," says Nissim Alon National Health Fund CEO.

Chief Rabbi Calls for Health Ministry Guidelines // Photo: Bureau of Rabbi David Lowe

Speaking to "Israel Today," Alon warns that "Passover should be canceled. Celebrate only in the family. This is mental oversight. If it were in my hands I would cancel Passover. "No crazy shopping and tools. That's a lot of traffic outside the house."

The CEO of Leumit Health Fund claims that this may resemble what happened in Purim, when there were many contagion cases during the festivities. "Passover cannot be during Corona. Otherwise we will have the same story as Purim. Purim had to be canceled. Half a million shekels cost me to cancel the Purim party for national workers, because I was worried that if one of the staff members would be at a party one third of the fund would be in solitary confinement. But the parties continued, both in the religious and secular sectors. So he says that the medical and rabbinic leadership should call to cancel and reject Passover - to celebrate at home.

According to him, Alon saw an increase in the number of Corona patients at the checkout in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, even before the Ministry of Health's data showed that these two cities are leading in the number of patients. "Unfortunately, we see very quickly the adults in the ultra-Orthodox sector in hospitals. We pray that this will not happen. The examination in the ultra-orthodox sector is bigger and we see that in us as well."

Speaking at the Knesset Corona Committee in the Knesset chaired by MK Ofer Shalach, Finance Ministry Director General Shai Ba'ad said: "We have quite a few problems in ultra-Orthodox society, we have quite a few problems in areas such as Bnei Brak" The Passover for fear that it will pose another risk.

"100 tests is not enough"

Only on Thursday, the Ministry of Health authorized the HMOs to carry out corona examinations to their policyholders by allocating them to a health fund: In general, 500 tests, Maccabi 250, Unified 150 and National 100 tests per day, with the approval of a responsible physician in each fund. The responsible physician will also forward the list of subjects to MDA so that they are invited to the test complexes or examined in homes.

"100 tests is not enough," Alon argues. "Even if I do roll in the air, I will not give enough to everyone. It is wrong and I wish we could give a maximum of tests. But the resources are limited and we are prioritizing." My primary care physician knows how to divide into high risk areas. Jerusalem and Bnei Brak deserve more scrutiny than North and South. Because there are more patients. "

He added that "the group most concerned about patients and medical staff is those patients who have not returned from abroad and are unknown to those who have been exposed to a verified patient."

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Alon argues that the criteria are actually missing the population at high risk of coronary disease, the elderly. "If it is a 75-year-old woman whose children and grandchildren do not come and have symptoms. The HMOs say according to MDA's criteria to tell her that she is not eligible for the examination. And others say it is better not to go to the clinic but to call on the phone or digital so that a remote diagnosis can be made. "

Clalit family doctor also warned that the criteria still cause the risk of missing out on at-risk populations and older populations. "The general has been allocated 500 tests a day. My district is getting 50 a day. That's really not enough. We will continue to see the young patients because they know how to press and get tests and the elderly are not getting what they deserve."