Coronavirus Lockdown: In A Good Place, Prep For Possible Surge, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.

Infectious diseases specialist Dr. Rontgene Solante says the Philippines remains at a low risk for COVID-19.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/11/23/ph-remains-in-a-good-place-amid-covid-19-emergency

An infectious diseases expert on Tuesday said the country remains to be in a good position in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic emergency.

Infectious diseases specialist Dr. Rontgene Solante, in an interview with ABS-CBN News, said most indicators point to COVID-19 being of low risk.

“Our cases have really been very low for the past several months since January. The use of ICU more or less, we can deal with this if ever the WHO will lift the public health emergency. Definitely we’re in a good place in terms of how we deal with it, even with the variants of concern like omicron. In our country we have some uptick of cases but not enough to disrupt the lives of Filipinos,” he said.

He also said that despite US President Joe Biden declaring an end to the three-year emergency status of COVID-19 in their country, the Philippines continues to be under an emergency status because of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration.

“We are under that WHO mandate. That’s why we are still in that emergency. But in terms of the policies, vaccine procurement and funding has already expired since that state of calamity," he said.

The country’s state of calamity expired in December 2022, which has posed delays to the arrival of bivalent vaccines donated by COVAX.

“The DOH should now incorporate COVID-19 as part of the other infectious diseases program. If you include it in the regular program of prevention and control of other infectious diseases like dengue, HIV and TB then the procurement of vaccines can also be facilitated based on giving vaccines only to the most vulnerable and for those who will really benefit," he said.

The Department of Health has since said it is awaiting the passage of the Center for Disease Control bill which would ensure the country’s preparedness in terms of vaccine and medicine procurement in case another pandemic emerges.

But the slight rise in cases have local authorities around the country mulling the return of mandatory face mask rules. Iloilo has mandated face masks for people transacting business at City Hall. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1199207

The city government here has again required its employees and clients transacting at the Iloilo City Hall to wear face masks due to the rising cases of the coronavirus disease.

“Face masks will ensure that infection will not increase in closed areas while continuing with the services of the city,” said City Mayor Jerry Treñas in a Viber message to members of the media Tuesday evening.

Trenas and his spouse, Rosalie, were among those infected by the disease last month and the mayor was able to report back to the office on Tuesday.

He added though that the hospitalization rate does not increase since most of the cases were mild.

Dr. Roland Jay Fortuna, City Health Office assistant department head, in a previous announcement, said from January until March this year, Iloilo City has only recorded one case of Covid-19 daily. However, the figure increased to four since the start of April.

“It is thus important to continue the minimum public health standards in our place of work and recreation. The minimum public health standards shall continue to be implemented to prevent and minimize the spread of Covid-19 in the country,” he said.

Minimum public health standards include physical distancing, hand hygiene, cough etiquette, and wearing of masks, regardless of vaccination status.

Manila says they are studying the issue because of the slight uptick in cases.

https://www.philstar.com/nation/2023/04/16/2259188/manila-eyes-mandatory-use-face-masks

The city government of Manila may review its policy on the use of face masks after it observed a surge in COVID-19 casees, Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan said yesterday.

In a statement issued by the city’s public information office, Lacuna-Pangan said while “the reimposition of the mandatory face mask policy is not yet needed at the moment,” she “will continue to observe closely in the next coming days the trend of new COVID-19 cases to determine if mandating the use of face masks indoors and outdoors will be necessary.”

From 36 active cases on April 11, the figure climbed to 57 on April 13. The number of active cases jumped to 71 on Friday, with 15 cases recorded in Tondo 1 alone.

The remaining active cases on Friday came from Ermita with four; Intramuros, two; Malate, seven; Paco, eight; Pandacan, seven; Quiapo, one; Sampaloc, nine; San Andres, five; San Nicolas, three; Sta. Cruz, four; Sta. Mesa, one; and Tondo 2, five.

The districts of Binondo, Port Area, San Miguel and Sta. Ana did not record any COVID-19 case last Friday.

Lacuna-Pangan also called on residents to continue wearing face masks and get vaccinated against COVID-19.

OCTA Research earlier said the seven-day COVID positivity rate in the National Capital Region continued to increase in the first week of April, hitting 6.5 percent from 4.4 percent on April 1.

Metro Manila posted the most number of new COVID cases among all regions in the past two weeks at 1,065.

But the DOH says they will not be recommending mandatory face masks. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1199660

The Department of Health (DOH) is not considering the reimplementation of the face mask mandate despite the increase in coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases.

In recent weeks, the country’s positivity rate, or the number of people testing positive for Covid-19, increased to 7.6 percent from last week’s 6.9 percent.

The average daily Covid-19 infections also rose to 371 cases per day from last week’s 276.

“This is voluntary. Nothing is being discussed about it at the moment," DOH Officer in Charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a media briefing on Tuesday.

Vergeire said the opening of various sectors of the economy could be one of the factors for the increase in cases.

“We encourage everybody, even before, to choose, to know when to wear face masks,” she said.

Citing early guidelines on face mask-wearing, she advised the elderly, people with co-morbidities, and individuals in crowded areas and places with poor ventilation to wear masks for protection.

She also assured that the nation’s health system is "prepared" to accommodate Covid-19 cases needing medical attention.

Despite the slight surge in cases not resulting in hospitalizations the DOH is warning hospitals in Davao to prepare for an onslaught of patients because of the travel during Holy Week. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1199240

The Department of Health in Davao Region (DOH-11) urged hospitals Wednesday to prepare for the possible surge of coronavirus disease 2019 (Coid-19) cases in their areas due to the recent Holy Week observance.

“Given the situation, there is a compelling need for hospitals to prepare for the possibility of a surge, especially with the long holiday in observance of the Holy Week, in which family and public gatherings were expected,” DOH-11 said in an advisory.

DOH-11 bared that there has been a notable increase in Covid-19 cases in Davao Region, particularly in this city.

As of April 10, the healthcare utilization rate shows that the regional hospital capacity is at 31.1 percent for non-intensive care unit (ICU) bed use and 40.4 percent for ICU bed use.

The agency reminded health facilities to observe the guidelines for Covid-19 response which mandates that all hospitals allocate at least 20 percent of their current authorized bed capacity for Covid-19 patients.

Of course nothing is going to happen. Nothing ever does. Why exactly are the authorities fear mongering again? How does this help the economy recover? How does this encourage tourism? It doesn't.

The general public will now be able to procure the second booster shot. 

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/12/23/doh-2nd-covid-booster-to-be-offered-to-general-public

The Philippines will offer the second COVID-19 booster to the general public, the Department of Health announced Wednesday, allowing more Filipinos get additional protection against the virus.

(Based on the updated emergency use authorization of the Food and Drug Administration and the positive recommendation of the Health Technology Assessment Council, we can now use the vaccines we have as second booster for the general population or our health adults.)

Only vulnerable groups such as healthcare workers and the elderly were allowed to receive the fourth jab last year.

But will anyone really take advantage of this offer? There are millions who have not even had the first shot and the majority of those people, 69%, have said they have no desire to be vaccinated.

The Rodeo Festival is coming back to Masbate after a three year absence due to the pandemic. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1199197

The province of Masbate is again celebrating its famous Rodeo Festival after three years of hiatus due to the coronavirus disease pandemic.

In an interview on Tuesday, Department of Tourism (DOT)-Bicol regional director Herbie Aguas said he was very happy over the influx of tourists, noting that based on his assessment, the number of tourists witnessing the week-long event could reach 100,000.

Residents and several local and foreign visitors in cowboy attire on Tuesday joined the parade that signaled the opening of the festival, which promotes the province's agricultural products and tourism.

"The opening of the Rodeo is very entertaining. First, there are so many people who joined the opening. After three years, we again have the Rodeo. Everybody is so excited, almost all the Roll-Off, Roll-On (RoRo) and the fast craft vessels are fully booked, even the plane flight going to Masbate. It's a sign that people here in the region and even our neighboring regions are here to observe, witness and enjoy the festival," Aguas said.

Another festival back on the menu.