With nine Bhutanese having tested positive for COVID-19 in New York, Bhutanese community there formed a task force and has rented two apartments as a quarantine facility which can house around 20 patients.
It has been a week since the Bhutanese community rented the apartment in New York and they have been managing the rents from themselves.
Lotey Gyeltshen, the President of the United Bhutanese Association in New York said that the quarantine facility is housing 2 of the patients for now. “In the Bhutanese community, nine of them tested positive for the virus. Of them, two have recovered and are in home-quarantine. And two are still in the hospital but are in stable condition. While two of them have been discharged from the hospital and are in the quarantine facility initiated by our special task force out here, another three are in home-quarantine and are recovering very well,” he said.
He also said the Bhutanese community came together to support the task force morally and financially. “All we needed is financial support, and all people supported us. They said though the command to book apartment for quarantine is from His Majesty The King, we should not burden His Majesty and the government when it comes to cost and that we should be able to manage it from within ourselves,” he added.
Apart from personal clothes, all necessities are provided at the facility.
“All the expenditure for the quarantine facility will be funded by our community here. All people here have supported with donations. The task force in discussion with members has decided to arrange funds on our own for the quarantine facility. We are managing the expenditure from that. We are providing all the essential supplies at the quarantine facility,” he added.
Patients at the quarantine facility are also being monitored twice a week by a Bhutanese nurse who works in New York.
The confirmed COVID-19 case in New York city crossed 160,000 with over 50000 recovered.
Tshering Zam
