More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1681489/philippines-detects-81-covid-19-cases-of-xbb-omicron-subvariant-doh |
The Philippines has recorded 81 coronavirus cases characterized by the “highly immune-evasive” XBB Omicron subvariant, the Department of Health (DOH) announced Tuesday.
(Based on the latest sequencing run, we already logged 81 XBB cases in two regions of the country.)
(70 were tagged as recovered already, eight are still under isolation, while the outcome of the three remaining cases are still being verified.)
The new XBB coronavirus subvariant is believed to be highly immune-evasive as people with antibodies against COVID-19 could still acquire it.
Additionally, Vergeire said the country likewise detected 193 coronavirus cases of XBC Omicron subvariant in 11 regions.
Of the 193 cases, the DOH official said 176 were tagged as recovered, three remains on isolation, five were reported to have died, while the status of the remaining cases are yet to be determined.
That's actually two subvariants of COVID-19. They are said to be immune-evasive but one health expert says the current vaccines could still protect against them.
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| https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/848690/current-vaccines-could-still-protect-vs-serious-illnesses-due-to-xbb-xbc-health-expert/story/ |
COVID-19 vaccines that are currently administered in the country could still protect the population against serious diseases brought by infections of the Omicron XBB subvariant and XBC variant, an emergency medicine expert said Thursday.
Dr. Ted Herbosa, chairman of the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine, said vaccines remain effective in preventing severe and critical illnesses due to COVID-19, or even death, especially among the vulnerable sectors.
(It is still important that we get vaccinated because the findings show that all variants are still affected by the vaccines. Our primary vaccines and boosters are still useful to prevent XBB and XBC.)
According to the Department of Health (DOH), the XBB is a recombinant of two Omicron subvariants, while the XBC is a recombinant of the Omicron BA.2 and Delta (B.1.617.2) variants. Both the XBB and XBC have “potential immune-escape characteristics.”
Herbosa said this immune evasion ability is a concern for health professionals, thus the call for continuous vaccination and wearing of face masks in indoor spaces.
(One concern of the experts here is the fact that those who have already been infected with COVID-19 are getting reinfected. An immune-escape is happening. Even if you have antibodies, have been vaccinated, or were infected before, apparently, you could still have symptoms.)
He doesn't know for sure based on experimentation that the vaccines work and he even admits that vaccinated people are being infected. Why even bother getting injected with an experimental vaccine.
The nation's vaccination program continues but in Negros Oriental the drive is performing poorly.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1186544 |
The provincial government of Negros Oriental continues to remain under Alert Level 2 status due to its poor accomplishment in the vaccination drive against Covid-19.
Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion, in a press briefing Wednesday, said as of Oct. 18, the total number of individuals who received the full vaccination of Covid-19, including the one-shot Janssen vaccine, is 660,056.
This represents 57.47 percent of the province’s total target of 1,148,424 individuals to be vaccinated, she said.
Estacion appealed to the people to have themselves vaccinated even though the number of Covid-19 cases in Negros Oriental has significantly dropped.
She also encouraged those who are fully vaccinated to avail of the booster shots to strengthen their immunity against the coronavirus disease.
In Davao senior citizens who get vaccinated are being given 2,000 pesos each.
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| https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1943939/davao/local-news/davnor-gives-p2k-to-senior-citizens-who-got-vaccinated-vs-covid-19 |
AS part of its effort to boost its vaccination rate, the Provincial Government of Davao del Norte gave out P2,000 to senior citizens who got vaccinated for Covid-19.
Governor Edwin Jubahib led the distribution of the financial incentives on Monday, October 17, 2022, to about 500 elderlies who received both doses and booster shots of Covid-19 vaccines.
In a press release, the funding for the incentives is sourced from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Jubahib implemented the vaccine incentive reward program to entice senior citizens to get vaccinated.
“I am happy that you responded to our call for you to get immunized,” the governor said.
The provincial government implemented the vaccine incentives reward program, as an effective way to encourage seniors to get vaccinated, as they are at highest risk of deaths due to Covid-19.
Jubahib had been campaigning for the vaccination as some remained hesitant to get vaccinated due to misinformation. Thus, he called on his people to get vaccinated.
“Do not believe fake news stories since the truth is unvaccinated individuals are high-risk. There is a great possibility that you cannot survive since unvaxxed people are more likely to die of Covid-19,” the governor said.
What a lie. The survival rate across the board is very high and vaccination is no guarantee of not getting infected or of even dying.
It has previously been noted that the VaxCertPH system, the Philippines' national vaccine registration database, has been down and now there is a backlog that needs resolving.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1186600 |
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos Jr. on Thursday urged local government units (LGUs) to immediately address the 1.4 million backlog in the registration of vaccination records in the Vaccination Information Management System (VIMS) that is needed for the issuance of VaxCertPH.
VaxCertPH is the government’s official digital vaccination certificate program, which is based on the centralized data in the VIMS.
“This has long been an issue in our LGUs as we try to improve the inventory of Filipino citizens who have registered for VaxCertPH. We implore our LGUs to work double time in addressing their backlogs in the VIMS,” Abalos said in a statement.
He noted that the VIMS has a total backlog of 1,460,582 vaccination records as of September 22 – a total of 334,317 of which were due to missing records; 308,386 were not recorded for lack of manpower; 243,300 were due to late submission; 122,897 had incomplete data; 109,806 had missing data fields; 94,575 had operational and procedural issues; and 75,831 had issues with Internet connections, among others.
“Our vaccination program is a continuing campaign, that is why we need to register our people’s vaccine records to avoid backlogs,” Abalos said.
He underscored the importance for LGUs to ensure that the digital records of their vaccinated constituents are updated, especially because VaxCertPH is among the most widely recognized vaccination certificates globally, being accepted in 94 countries and territories.
What an inconvenience for Filipinos who have to travel for business especially.
The DOH has heeded calls to scrap the One Pass System which some legislators said was a burden.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1682918/doh-boq-replace-one-health-pass-with-e-arrival-card |
The Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday said it has replaced the One Health Pass to the electronic Arrival Card (eArrival Card) in cooperation with the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ).
This, said DOH in a statement, would streamline arrival requirements for travels.
“Through the eArrival Card, we hope to reduce delays and eliminate inconvenience for our travelers. We likewise aim to support the tourism sector in the country while ensuring the health and safety of both foreign and Filipino travelers,” said DOH Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire.
A mandatory pre-registration to the said platform is then set starting November 1, 2022.
Inbound travelers to the Philippines, meanwhile, can now fill out the eArrival Card within 72 hours prior to departure.
Only travel details, profile, and health declarations will be requested, said DOH, then a QR code is then generated as a “scan and go” mechanism “to reduce processing time at points of entry.”
Health Regulation Team Officer-In-Charge Undersecretary Charade Mercado-Grande, for her part, said that through this effort, processing will become easier and faster “while maintaining health regulation and monitoring.”
It remains to be seen if the E-Arrival Card will be any less of an inconvenience for inbound travelers, especially tourists.
It has been four months since Marcos took office and he has yet to appoint a DOH Secretary. Now we know why.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1186670 |
President Ferdinand R. Marcos said Thursday he would only appoint a Department of Health (DOH) Secretary after the country’s coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic situation is “normalized.”
In an interview with reporters, Marcos maintained that the Philippines must first be lifted from its state of public health emergency and state of calamity before he could appoint a health chief.
“We have to get away from the emergency stance of the DOH because we have to open up businesses. We have to make the Philippines more hospitable to travelers – both business and tourists – and it does not help if we are still under a state of calamity, if we are the only country that still has mask protocol…We still need to fix that,” he told reporters at the Manila Hotel.
“We must treat the pandemic no longer, we must treat Covid no longer as an emergency but something that we will have to manage forever. It’s like flu, like pneumonia. It’s always there but we must be careful not to get sick, and that is (the) way we should be handling Covid.”
Marcos acknowledged that it would be difficult to immediately lift the state of public health emergency and state of calamity as it would directly affect the DOH’s current handling of the health crisis.
“We cannot remove ourselves yet from the way we are handling it. We cannot remove ourselves yet from the way we are handling it because if we lift the state of calamity, our health care workers won’t get the benefits due them, according to the law. We won’t be able to import vaccines, procurement would be slow,” he said.
He noted that deaths due to Covid-19 have been minimal, and mostly among those with co-morbidities.
“What we have to understand about Covid and the way that we are treating it is that the risk factor of getting Covid in 2022 is very, very different from the risk factor of getting Covid in 2020 or 2021 and that is indicated by the hospitalizations and the rate of the death,” he added.
Is Marcos really this stupid? He is citing the exact reason there needs to be an official DOH Secretary, to normalize and control the situation. That there is a state of emergency only underscores the need for a DOH Secretary. Since, as he claims, the emergency declaration will not be lifted anytime soon that means there will not be a DOH Secretary anytime soon. At least he notes COVID-19 deaths have been minimal and mostly among people who are already sick.
Senator Pimentel says the next DOH Chief must teach Filipinos to live with COVID-19.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2022/10/22/2218439/doh-chief-must-teach-pinoys-live-covid-19 |
The next secretary of the Department of Health (DOH) that President Marcos will appoint should help Filipinos learn to live with COVID-19 to boost the country’s economic recovery from the pandemic, senators said yesterday.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III and Sen. Sonny Angara spoke on the issue as Marcos has yet to appoint a permanent health secretary after more than 100 days in office.
Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire currently heads the DOH as officer-in-charge.
Pimentel said if the President really wants the country to move away from the health emergency and open up the economy, “then he should appoint his ‘alter ego’ as head of the DOH.”
“Someone who shares the same thinking he (Marcos) just explained. Get an outsider if necessary. But show and shower him or her with all the support for us to be able to ‘live with the virus’,” he added.
Isn't this what the DOH has been doing for the past two years?? This is as stupid as Senator Bong Go saying there is no rush to appoint a DOH Secretary because the current OIC is doing a great job. Why not just appoint her?
Despite Marcos saying he won't appoint a DOH Secretary until the situation is back to normal he has declared the Philippines is already back to normal.
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| https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/24/22/marcos-says-masskara-fest-shows-ph-back-to-normal |
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Sunday attended the Masskara Festival here, saying the return of the festivities after a 2-year hiatus proves that the Philippines has is back to normal and is ready to receive tourists after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Marcos, who did not don a face mask through most of the day, visited a relief distribution center and toured Bacolod City’s soon-to-be business district before witnessing the culminating activity of the Masskara Festival.
"After two years, we have the opportunity to open our doors again to all visitors who come from everywhere, not only in the Philippines but also in other countries," he told attendees of the Masskara Festival.
"By celebrating the Masskara Festival... you showed the whole Philippines and the whole world that we here in the Philippines are back, ready to go back to work, we are back to school for our young people and we are going back to what we used to do to beautify and increase the economy of the Philippines so that the lives of every Filipino can be more convenient," he said.
Marcos said he would use Bacolod as an example to prove that the country is back on its feet after the pandemic.
“So it is a good thing to remind people that the pandemic may have been difficult. The pandemic really put us through the wringer, but we are back. The pandemic is fading away. We are learning to manage it,” he said during the welcome luncheon.
The most symbolic action signifying a return to normalcy would be a lifting of the mask mandate in toto. Marcos is poised to do just that. Naysayers complain that if he does this COVID-19 cases will rise and people will neglect booster shots. Others say it will be a boon for the economy.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1187014 |
The chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations on Tuesday said President Ferdinand R. Marcos' decision to make the use of face mask in indoor settings voluntary combined with the economic impact of the 2022 and 2023 national budgets would result in more economic growth.
AKO BICOL Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co said he is expecting the country's gross domestic product (GDP) to further improve in the last two quarters of 2022 with the calibrated lifting of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) restrictions and the continuing reopening of the economy.
He further noted that the swift implementation and high agency 2023 budget absorptive capacity would carry forward that GDP growth.
"The lifting of some mask mandates indoors I believe is quite justified. Further calibrated lifting of Covid restrictions plus the economic impact of the 2022 and 2023 national budgets will result in more economic growth," he said.
With the peso being so weakened it appears that it will take more than lifting the face mask mandate to increase the GDP.
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