MADINAH King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, has approved a proposal by Minister of Health Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah to treat foreigners suffering from contagious diseases free of charge while ensuring their deportations are facilitated quickly.
Dr. Khaled Marghalani, Ministry of Health spokesman, said the Kingdom has always been committed to protecting citizens and foreigners from diseases.
He said the ministry would immediately implement the royal order.
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Read MoreA fifth person has died from a new respiratory illness similar to the Sars virus, according to the World Health Organization.
The WHO said the two latest deaths were in Jordan. The disease had previously been detected only in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, although one patient was transferred to the UK for treatment.
It brings the total number of cases of the infection to nine.
There may also be evidence of human to human spread of the virus.
Read MoreJAZAN Around 70 HIV cases are discovered in Saudi Arabia every year during pre-marital medical checkups but the Kingdom remains among the Arab countries least affected by the virus, according to an AIDS consultant at Jazan's King Fahd Hospital.
Dr. Mohammed Bin Mohammed Al-Hazmi told local Arabic daily Al-Madinah that about 97 percent of female AIDS patients in the Kingdom contracted the disease during their married lives.
He said: "These patients contracted the infection during their conjugal lives, not outside of them as was commonly believed."
He said Jeddah tops all the Kingdom's towns and cities in terms of the number of AIDS patients.
Read MoreThe FDA warned people taking the hepatitis C drug Incivek (telaprevir) that it has received reports of a serious skin rash from the medication, which has led to several deaths.
The deaths occurred in people taking Incivek combination treatment. This antiviral treatment includes the drug Incivek in combination with the drugs peginterferon alfa and ribavirin.
This combination treatment is most commonly used for genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C in adults with compensated liver disease (meaning the liver has some damage but still works), including those who have cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) or those who have previously received interferon-based treatment.
Read MoreTelling a new partner you have an STD can be intimidating, but there are steps you can take to make it easier.
Read MoreIdentifying the "smell" of different types of lung bacteria could lead to a simple breath test to diagnose infections, a study on mice, in the Journal of Breath Research, suggests.
Breath analysis could reduce lung infection diagnosis times from weeks to minutes, the Vermont researchers said.
Scientists have already researched breath tests to diagnose asthma and cancer.
An expert said breath analysis was "an important and emerging field".
Read MoreObesity can lower vitamin D levels in the body, a study suggests.
The report, in the journal PLOS Medicine, analysed genetic data from 21 studies - a total of 42,000 people.
It found every 10% rise in body mass index (BMI) - used as an indicator of body fat - led to a 4% drop of available vitamin D in the body.
Read MoreGood posture and sitting up straight might not save you from back pain because the physical condition of your spine is far more dependent on genes than lifestyle, scientists have found.
They play a "key role" in lumbar disc degeneration (LDD), for a long time suspected of being the number one cause of chronic lower back pain, according to specialists.
Over the years these discs, which cushion the vertebrae, can end up getting squashed and bulging out. Bony growths can also emerge from the spinal column itself. Both are thought to trigger back pain.
Scientists have now found that serious lumbar disc degeneration is inherited in 65 to 80 per cent of cases. Read More