Sheikh Dr Basel Al-Sabah

KUWAIT: Health
Minister Sheikh Dr Basel Al-Sabah issued a ministerial resolution amending the
regulations of the government-sponsored treatment abroad program for Kuwaiti
citizens. The new amendments included adding kidney dialysis for patients
dispatched for treatment for other diseases who happen to need it without
having to be examined by a committee specialized in kidney dialysis.

The amendments
also included paying treatment expenses for patients hospitalized for over two
weeks with road accident injuries, severe fractures, burns, heart attacks and
strokes, allowing transplant patients to suspend treatment for a maximum of
three months and later resume it without having to be reexamined, authorizing
overseas treatment managers to facilitate the travel of patients and their
escorts and authorizing health offices to extend cancer treatment for a maximum
of six months.

In other news,
Mubarak Al-Kabeer hospital's manager Dr Nadia Al-Jumaa strongly denied social
media allegations about a Syrian family stealing oxygen cylinders from the
hospital. Jumaa urged all social media networks to verify the content of
various posts and check their validity from official sources.

Stop grants

Commenting on
Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development's signing of an agreement to grant
Egypt a $15 million loan to build four water desalination plants, MP Osama
Al-Shaheen stressed that it is a public and parliamentary demand as well as a
national necessity to stop all grants worth millions of dollars to Egypt and
other countries. On another concern, Shaheen demanded immediate educational
reform after only three Kuwaiti physics teachers graduated this year compared
to 3,000 social studies teachers, adding that it is no longer acceptable that
only 59 percent intermediate school and 46 percent secondary school teachers
are Kuwaitis.

Public
universities

The government
started preparing the charter of regulations for the government universities law,
said official sources, expecting regulations to be completed by the end of the
year. The sources added that the government will form a special academic
committee to prepare to build new universities - in northern Jahra and Sabah
Al-Ahmad - to meet the new urban expansions and the expected population
increase. The sources stressed that the government is considering building a
new university to teach only the specialties Kuwait will need over the next 50
years, such as renewable energy, electronics, project management, development
and other majors.    

Water guns

The Municipal
Council's technical committee is scheduled to hold a meeting on Tuesday to
discuss several topics including the Kazema project and banning the use of
water guns and balloons during the national celebrations. The meeting's agenda
will also include a request by private universities to allocate land for
private universities in Abu Halifa, in addition to various other proposals and
topics.

By Meshaal
Al-Enezi and A Saleh