U.S. delivers emergency medical supplies to Pakistani medical staff

The US government sent a batch of emergency medical supplies to Pakistan through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help the two countries continue to work together to fight the scourge of COVID.

According to a statement from the US Embassy in Islamabad, “this latest airlift includes more than 1 million pieces of critical personal protective equipment, which is essential to help protect Pakistan’s frontline medical staff and medical professionals”.

“Today, the United States is pleased to support the Pakistani government in protecting the country’s frontline medical staff in the fight against COVID-19,” said Julie Corning, mission director of USAID.

“In this unprecedented period, the United States will continue to cooperate with Pakistan to provide urgently needed medical supplies.”

The statement said that in early June, the United States Agency for International Development shipped a batch of protective equipment and fingertip oximeters to medical institutions across Pakistan.

The donation also includes an additional $3.5 million in additional funds for local procurement of health-related supplies to support the overall response to COVID-19.

According to the statement, since the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, the United States has provided 49.7 million U.S. dollars in aid to Pakistan.

The statement added that in July last year, the US Agency for International Development provided 200 ventilators and trained more than 600 health workers in 64 Pakistani hospitals.

In addition, USAID has improved and expanded laboratory testing, disease surveillance, case tracking, infection prevention and control, and patient care in all regions.