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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Solon lauds DoH for 'proactive' COVID response efforts

Solon lauds DoH for 'proactive' COVID response efforts

Published Jan 8, 2021 05:52 pm

Kabayan Party-List Rep. Ron Salo gave recognition to the Department of Health (DoH) Friday for being proactive against the new coronavirus variant.

"The DOH understands the severity of the threats posed by the more transmissible new COVID strain, and has taken immediate serious steps in preventing its entry to the Philippines," said Salo, a vice-chairman of the House Committee on Public Accounts.

"At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, the DoH dilly-dallied in imposing travel restrictions on foreign nationals entering the country. With the news of the new variant, however, the DoH immediately imposed travel restrictions on foreign travellers coming from 19 countries and territories," the lammaker said.

"Few days after, foreign travellers from the US (United States), where the new variant was detected in Florida, were also included," he noted.

Salo hailed the Health department for its vigorous efforts to respond to the threats posed by the "mutant" coronavirus.

"Indeed, the government cannot afford to be complacent in dealing with the new COVID variant. We are still grappling in eliminating the old variant, and we still have concerns in ensuring the immediate vaccination of our people particularly the frontliners and the vulnerable.

"So I commend the DoH Secretary (Francisco Duque III ) and the members of the IATF in taking immediate serious steps to ensure that the new COVID variant will not reach our shores," Salo reckoned.

Despite this, he said the DoH must strengthen its medical surveillance system to ensure immediate detection and isolation of the new COVID variant in case it infects any member of the population.

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