Aid groups offer Lebanon's migrant workers a virus lifeline
As Lebanon grapples with surging coronavirus infections and a financial crisis that has crushed its economy, migrant workers often cannot find the care they need if they test positive, Reuters reports.
“Because of the economic crisis and because of the outbreak of the Covid pandemic as well, there’s been a decrease in the quality of life of migrant workers and they find themselves certainly in a more dire situation,” said Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) field coordinator Maya Trad.
She and her colleagues have set up a helpline that directs callers to mental health, medical or social support. Migrant workers who test positive can quarantine at a centre in southern Lebanon, or will be sent to public hospitals where MSF makes sure they are given care.