According to a Ministry of Health spokesperson, “Please note that the story posted on TNN, earlier today, regarding a 9-month-old child not allowed to quarantine at a hotel with their mother is not factual. This is a very unfortunate situation that, regrettably, is now in the public domain. 

“At no time did the Port Health officials working at the airport separate the mother from her child or state that the child could not go to the hotel with the mother. The mother of this child elected to go to a hotel with her male companion and leave her child with her mother (the child’s grandmother). 

“The couple and infant mentioned in the story qualified for exemption from payment for the hotel quarantine. Although the mother of the child believed that she was exempt from Hotel Quarantine, at no time did Port Health officials suggest to the couple that they could not quarantine with the child at the hotel. The couple decided to quarantine at the hotel and leave the child with the grandmother.

“Should the mother wish to unite with her child at the hotel, the Government will happily assist in ensuring that takes place.”

The spokesperson concluded, “Additionally, neither the Ministry of Health nor the Department of Communications received a request for a comment from TNN regarding this story prior to it being published. Now that the facts are clear, we would ask that TNN retract this story.  

“If a media query had been received, we would have been able to clarify the facts surrounding this matter and helped the community to understand that the quarantine process ensures that families can stay together, whether at home or in a quarantine hotel.”