The government has extended its incentive package for health workers by another three months.

This means that all health workers will pay no income tax for the next three months, that is July, August and September.

Again, all frontline health workers, as defined by the Ministry of Health, will continue to receive the additional allowance of 50 per cent of their basic salary per month, that is - July, August and September.

This was announced by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in a televised address to the nation on Sunday, 28 June 2020.

Nana Akufo-Addo first announced the incentive package for healthcare workers during his fifth address to the nation on Sunday, 5 April 2020, to motivate and express appreciation to all health workers for the months of April, May and June.

“I know the implementation of this directive for the months of April, May and June has been fraught with some challenges, caused, mainly, by the protracted discussions over the definition of who qualifies as “frontline health workers” in this context. I have, however, been assured that they have now been resolved, and payments will be effected from the end of June. I should reiterate that the insurance package for health workers is still in place,” said Nana Akufo-Addo.

While appreciating the efforts of health workers, he urged them to remain professional and compassionate adding that “every avoidable death, be it corona-related or not, is a tragedy.”

Meanwhile, the country’s COVID-19 cases have reached 17,351 with 12, 994 recoveries.