More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.
The United States has extended at least $50 million worth of assistance to help the Philippines mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday.
This was disclosed by Blinken during his attendance at a COVID-19 assistance event in Manila, where he also witnessed the vaccination of children ahead of the opening of classes later this month.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), in support of the Philippines’ PinasLakas vaccination and booster campaign, initiated a pediatric vaccination activity with handover of COVID-19 aid and logistical equipment on Saturday at the Manila Zoo.
Aside from Blinken, present during the event were US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson, Department of Health (DOH) Officer-in-Charge Maria Rosario Vergeire, and Manila City Mayor Dr. Honey Lacuna.
"We’ve been proud to have donated more than 33 million safe, effective vaccines to the Philippines, [with] no political strings attached," Blinken said in his speech.
Through the COVAX Facility, the US has donated more than 33 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to the Philippines which consisted of Pfizer, Moderna and J&J platforms, DOH said.
"We’ve provided more than $50 million to your COVID-19 response to help train healthcare workers, to boost the vaccine rollout, [and] to support the economic recovery," Blinken said.
"We’re also providing supplies for the continued fight against COVID-19, and we have some here with us here today—testing kits, laboratory equipment. All of that will go to the Philippines Genome Center, the Bulacan Medical Center, and our other partners who are here with us today," he added.
Vergeire thanked the US government "for helping the Philippines get back on its feet and build back better."
Department of Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire, who was also present at the event, thanked the US government "for helping the Philippines get back on its feet and build back better."
"The Filipino people will never forget the kindness you have shown during these trying times," she said.
Not China. Not Russian. The United States donated all the assistance. The DOH OIC says the Filipino people will never forget such kindness but I have my doubts. Many people probably don't even know this happened and others will certainly claim there are strings attached.
School is starting again and the OCTA says outbreaks are unavoidable.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1645466/covid-19-outbreaks-unavoidable-during-face-to-face-classes-octa |
With the resumption of face-to-face classes starting soon, independent COVID-19 monitor Octa Research warned that possible COVID-19 outbreaks in schools can’t be avoided.
Octa fellow Dr. Guido David said that schools should have policies in place for COVID-19 and parents should manage their expectations when their children return to school for in-person classes.
(We cannot avoid outbreaks, not surge per se but there will be outbreaks in schools. Infections will be expected).
Despite this, David stated that infection among children is unlikely to become severe but it is still possible.
(Most kids who are infected have mild or asymptomatic cases, since their bodies are healthy. But there might still be severe cases).
David advised schools to take precautions during face-to-face classes, such as vaccinating teachers and ensuring proper ventilation in classrooms.
Finally they are admitting that being healthy mitigates the effects of the virus. This is what many have been saying all along. Without comorbidities such as obesity or diabetes the virus is more than 99% survivable.
Churches were one of the many causalities of the pandemic. Mass was forbidden in come cases and when everything started reopening churches could only be partially filled. Everyone was live-streaming Mass which is of course impossible because Mass includes partaking of the body and blood. Now Churches are struggling to refill their pews.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/08/14/2202516/bringing-people-back-physical-mass-challenge |
Bringing people back to physical masses is perceived by an official of the Catholic Church as a challenge when the COVID pandemic is over, as the faithful are now used to attending masses online due to movement restrictions in the early days of quarantine.
In an episode of The Chiefs on Thursday, St. John Paul II parish priest Aris Sison said that a lot of Catholic faithful are already attending physical masses now that some COVID restrictions were lifted, but many still favor online or live-streamed masses.
“Many have come back, but I will admit, it seems there are those that have gotten used to online mass,” Sison said in a mix of Filipino and English.
Asked about the positive impact of online masses, Sison said the Catholic faithful have learned to pray, as he emphasized that online or live-streamed masses served as one of the people’s sources of spiritual nourishment, especially during the early days of the pandemic.
“So many have said that during the difficult times of the pandemic, many were saying that online masses really became a source of strength for them. They could not go to church. They were so afraid to go out of their homes and the online mass was their only source of spiritual nourishment,” he said.
However, Quiapo Church parochial vicar Fr. Douglas Badong and Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Public Affairs Commission executive secretary Fr. Jerome Secillano said it would not be hard to bring people back to physical masses.
“It’s not a challenge. It is more challenging to invite people to attend masses either physically or online,” Badong said, as he emphasized that online masses are a big help for people, especially those who are living alone and those who are suffering from depression.
He added that hearing the word of the Lord, either physically or virtually, helps people nourish their spiritual needs.
Secillano echoed Badong, saying online masses have become another form of family bonding, more people were given access to liturgical masses and social media platforms have been used for “sacred purposes” as they have been the modern medium for holy masses and other religious activities.
The obvious thing to do would to stop hosting online masses. But that's not likely.
The nation is not on lockdown anymore and most of the nation is at alert level 1 but there are still many restrictions on social distancing and wearing face masks everywhere. The DOH say the nation must boost its immunity in order to lift those restrictions. You know what that means.
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| https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/14/22/ph-must-boost-immunity-before-lifting-covid-restrictions-doh |
The Department of Health (DOH) said the Philippines will gradually follow the United States' model of loosening COVID-19 restrictions.
DOH officer-in-charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the country is taking the same direction as the US, where the healthcare system will only "protect the most vulnerable."
"We are here to live with the virus because we know that the virus will stay. Ang importante sa ating lahat, and I think the US government also has that kind of objective, that we will protect the most vulnerable, we will protect our healthcare system from being overwhelmed, and will try to prevent as much as possible severe and critical cases and deaths," Vergeire said last Friday.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had earlier recommended the lifting of the following restrictions: physical distancing, quarantine, and testing for asymptomatic patients with no exposure.
It has also recommended limiting contact tracing to healthcare personnel and other high-risk settings.
The CDC said the United States is now in a better condition to protect the public from severe COVID-19 infection.
Although the loosening of restrictions does not mean that the pandemic is over, it aims to help the public to return to their normal lives without having to worry about the coronavirus.
“We’re in a stronger place today as a nation, with more tools—like vaccination, boosters, and treatments—to protect ourselves, and our communities, from severe illness from COVID-19,” CDC Field Epidemiology and Prevention Branch chief Greta Massetti said.
“We also have a better understanding of how to protect people from being exposed to the virus, like wearing high-quality masks, testing, and improved ventilation. This guidance acknowledges that the pandemic is not over, but also helps us move to a point where COVID-19 no longer severely disrupts our daily lives," she added.
For Vergeire, the Philippines needs to increase its immunity before lifting restrictions. But for now, she said the DOH is pushing for individual responsibility among Filipinos for everyone's protection.
The Philippines needs to increase its immunity before lifting restriction and the DOH is "pushing for individual responsibility" in this regard. That means they really are flirting with making the vaccine and booster shots mandatory.
LGUs are being accused of allowing the surge for not being vigilant enough in enforcing health protocols.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/08/13/2202318/lgus-told-be-more-vigilant-enforcing-health-protocols |
Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos has directed local government units (LGUs) to strengthen the enforcement of health protocols as projections from the Department of Health (DOH) showed that COVID-19 cases could hit over 10,600 cases daily by October.
“We are calling for LGUs to closely monitor COVID cases in their areas. We are still in a pandemic and we count on our local officials to lead this war, especially in the coming months when alarming numbers of COVID-19 cases are projected,” Abalos said yesterday in a statement.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government chief noted that the DOH projection is a clear warning for local chief executives that they should not relax their COVID-19 measures. He stressed that the DILG is trying to avoid a spike in the National Capital Region (NCR) as this could also spread to other parts of the country.
“Many of our countrymen are working in Metro Manila, it is the country’s economic center, so the defense here must be strong to prevent the increase in cases that could spread in other areas,” he added.
Because we all know not wearing face masks properly is what actually spreads the virus.
Here is a tale of two pandemics. Tale 1:
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| https://entertainment.inquirer.net/460658/the-gift-of-the-pandemic-to-anne-curtis-as-mom-and-wife |
Each parent has his or her own unique journey, according to new mom Anne Curtis.
“When it comes to parenting, what you do won’t always be right in the eyes of others, but it’s the right way for you. This is the best parenting tip I’ve received from my own mom. I think what she is trying to say is, you’re not the perfect parent, no one is, so don’t let what other people say affect you,” declared the mom of 2-year-old Dahlia Amelie.
The wife of vlogger and restaurateur Erwan Heussaff also claimed that she is a “super hands-on” mom and wife. “I think that’s the gift of having to go through the series of lockdowns because of the pandemic; it really gave me an opportunity to focus on being a mother and a wife,” she pointed out.
Isn't it great that this rich starlet was forcibly locked down with there family which gave her "an opportunity to focus on being a mother and a wife." Now here is tale 2:
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| https://www.philstar.com/business/2022/08/15/2202777/pandemic-pulls-more-filipinos-back-poverty-2021 |
More Filipinos ended poor in 2021 compared to three years ago after the pandemic wiped out gains in poverty reduction that took years to achieve.
A survey of 165,029 families nationwide showed there were 19.99 million Filipinos living below the poverty line last year, up from 17.67 million recorded in the comparable period in 2018, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Monday. Poverty is measured every 3 years.
This translated to a poverty rate among the country’s population of 18.1% last year, higher than 16.6% rate posted in 2018.
The latest data indicates that the Duterte administration ended its six-year term missing its watered-down poverty reduction goal for its final year in 2022, when a poverty reading will not be conducted. Economic growth rebounded to 5.7% year-on-year in 2021 from a historic crash in 2020.
The previous administration originally hoped to cut the poverty rate by 13-14% this year for the Philippines to become an upper-middle income economy. There were notable gains in 2018 when the proportion of poor Filipinos was lowered from 22% in 2015, but those wins appeared to have been lost when the pandemic struck.This prompted the government at the time to temper that goal: to reduce the poverty rate to 15-17.5% this year.
Meanwhile the Marcos Jr. administration wants to cut poverty rate to 9% in its final year in 2028. To do this, the government is targeting to slash the current poverty rate by 5 percentage points by midterm of the nascent government.
"The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including income and employment losses, caused the poverty incidence to rise," Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan told a press conference.
"Restrictions on mobility and low earning capacity of poor households due to limited access to regular and productive jobs made the lives of Filipinos difficult," he added.
For the rich it was certainly the best of times. But for the poor it has been the worst of times and might even get worse.
There are a lot more stories from the pandemic this week. Monkeypox has halted international flights at Cebu Airport. 20 million COVID vaccines have been wasted. Despite the wastage the DOH has set aside funds to procure vaccines against other variants of COVID. The US CDC has issued a travel warning for the Philippines because of COVID-19 while the DOT says they have safety measures in place. The DOH says COVID cases are plateauing. ICU admissions are up but the Philippines remains low risk for COVID. There is more of course but I can't put it all here.
The most important thing to know for this week is that Marcos has decided the state of emergency will remain until the end of 2022 at least.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/08/17/2203298/marcos-says-extend-state-public-health-emergency-until-year-end |
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Wednesday he will be extending the state of public health emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic until year-end.
Asked by a reporter whether he will lengthen the state of public health emergency, which is different from the state of national calamity also declared due to COVID-19, Marcos answered in the affirmative.
Saying that amending emergency procurement laws could take time, he told reporters at the sidelines of a vaccination event in Manila that “we will likely extend it (state of public health emergency) until the end of the year.”
The Department of Health had warned that lifting the state of calamity would affect the emergency use authorizations granted to vaccines and medicines for COVID-19 and also the benefits enjoyed by healthcare workers.
Do you see? This is a way for the government to hold on to power in the name of public health. Now they can procure vaccines easily without all that red tape because it's an emergency.
You should write about this: https://i.redd.it/44trfa7pcgi91.png
ReplyDeleteThey're planning to tax video games on the internet I guess, gotta rack up that tax while they're at it