Minister of Health Saad Jaber said on Tuesday that the ministry will finish the equipment of new cancer, pediatric and emergency hospitals within the Al Bashir Government Hospital in March.

He said during the Parliamentary Finance Committee's debate of the Health Ministry's budget that the number of beds at Al-Bashir Hospital has been raised by 450, including 140 beds in the pediatric clinic with fully equipped and advanced operation rooms.

Jaber said that his ministry is seeking to elevate services through hiring specialist and consultant doctors to provide all hospitals in the Kingdom with medical staff.

He also outlined a health insurance net that the ministry will start implementing in March, as insurance will be optional during the next three years, but it will then be mandatory for all Jordanians and the children of Jordanian women, and also will be mandatory for everyone residing in the Kingdom, either Jordanian or else, in 2025.

The minister also announced that free health insurance will be made available for those whose monthly income is less than 300 dinars, while the government will support health insurance at 90 percent of the cost for those who have a monthly income of between 300-1,000 dinars.

He further announced salary hikes, new incentives and a pension raise for Health Ministry doctors.