Story By: Michael Leidig, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Asia Wire Report

Officials in the city at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak have sparked a heated debate after offering just 500 GBP to the families of medics who died fighting the disease.

The payments were announced earlier this week by the Wuhan Municipal Committee’s Organization Department that said families of medics who are infected by the disease would receive 3,000 yuan (GBP 330) and families of medics who died would get paid 5,000 yuan (GBP 550).

But the apparently well-meaning gesture was not well received by online commentators, with one saying on Weibo: “This is disgraceful. It’s not even worth the offer.”

Another asked: “Is this missing a few zeros?”

And the third pointed out: “So the life of a doctor is only worth 5,000 yuan now?”

Only a few seem sympathetic to the idea such as one who noted that although it is not much, it was “better than nothing”.

China has kept a lid on the number of medics infected by the disease, apparently in a bid to maintain morale on the front line fighting the disease.

Those know to have died include the Chinese doctor Li Wenliang who was sanctioned by police when he first tried to warn about the new type of virus.

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