The mega quarantine facility in Calamba City, Laguna is expected to be completed next month.
Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary and Isolation Czar Mark A. Villar said they expect the facility to be completed by mid-November.
“The organized DPWH Task Force to Facilitate Augmentation of Local and National Health Facilities together with Regional Office 4-A is currently fast-tracking the conversion of Calabarzon Regional Government Center into COVID-19 quarantine facility," he said.
According to the DPWH, the Calabarzon mega quarantine facility has 600 beds, 50 of which will be for healthcare workers and 550 for positive, mild, and asymptomatic patients.
Once operational, the DPWH said the isolation facility, which will be managed by the Calamba City government jointly with the Department of Health and Office of Civil Defense, would "prevent COVID-19 positive, mild, and asymptomatic patients from infecting others while in recovery."
Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain, head of the DPWH task force, has inspected the ongoing construction of cubicles and nurse stations, air-conditioning of the facility, quarters for the healthcare workers, and toilet and shower rooms for the patients.
DPWH construction of quarantine facilities all over the country made up for the shortage of hospital beds amid the response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
In his latest report to Villar, Sadain said that there are 695 COVID-19 facilities consisting of quarantine and isolation facilities and off-site dormitories with a total capacity of 24,707 beds being built by DPWH nationwide.
Of the total, 357 facilities with 15,608 beds have been completed as of Oct. 22 while others are expected to be finished soon.
The added bed capacity for isolation and quarantine will be a big boost to the government’s effort in containing the COVID-19 pandemic, added Sadain.