Al-Abiad: No room for politics in healthcare sector

Caretaker Minister of Public Health Firas al-Abiad said on Thursday, "The demand the control of the entry of medicine or medical supplies into Lebanon is not a political issue at all."

"In the field of health, there is no place for politics. We do not care whether the source of smuggled medicine is from the East or the West. We emphasize quality control because it serves everyone's interest," he stressed.

Al-Abiad noted that regulation and supervision ensure safety because counterfeit goods that enter Lebanon harm everyone without exception, regardless of the patient's gender, color, religion, or political affiliation. 

"We are fulfilling our duty to ensure the safety of citizens, and we hope that citizens, in turn, will be sufficiently aware not to be harmed when falling into the trap of smuggled and unregulated substances," he stressed
During his participation in the joint press conference held with the President of the syndicate of Opticians and Optometrists in Lebanon, Nisrine al-Achkar, he added, "Despite the successive crises that Lebanon is going through, the reputation of the Lebanese healthcare sector remains good."

"The evidence is that Lebanese expatriates come to the country to obtain medical services. Similarly, the reputation of the healthcare sector abroad, especially in Europe and the United States, is excellent, thanks to the efforts made by all workers in this sector from all unions," he concluded by saying.