The Department of Health (DOH) assured that the Philippines is ready in dealing with the new COVID-19 virus variant which has already been detected in the country.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said that the government continues to strengthen its responses against the pandemic.
“Lahat ng estratehiya na kung tawagin natin PDITR (Prevent, Detect, Isolate, Treat, and Reintegrate) strategy , we are leveling this up,” he said in a press briefing on Thursday.
“We are not defenseless...Yung ating dating ginagawa for the last 11 or 12 months----pinaigting natin ito sa mga dumaan na panahon ,” he said.
Duque said that the current critical care utilization rate nationwide is at 50 percent.
“So far, ang ating hospital capacity or critical care utilization rate ay sapat pa rin ang ating absorptive capacity--yung mga hospital natin and temporary treatment and monitoring facilities ,” he said.
The DOH also called on the different local government units to strictly implement the isolation of COVID-19 patients and their close contacts.
On Wednesday night, the DOH announced the detection of the new COVID-19 virus variant that was first discovered in the United Kingdom. It has been detected after samples from a 29-year-old Filipino who returned to the Philippines from the United Arab Emirates on Jan. 7 yielded positive genome sequencing results. The DOH said that the patient is a resident of Kamuning, Quezon City.
Travel ban inclusion
The DOH said that it will recommend to the Office of the President the inclusion of the United Arab Emirates in the list of countries with travel restrictions.
“We will be recommending to the Office of the President the inclusion (of UAE in the list)...aantayin po natin (ang decision) ,” said Duque.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that this move is a “proactive stance.”
“We are taking a proactive stance. Ayun po ang rekomendasyon ng ating mga eksperto para we can buy time... so that we can analyze the case well, determine if there are still other individuals who are affected by this variant, and to further prepare our (healthcare) system para po kung sakali may makita pa tayong (ibang kaso) ,” she said.
The Philippine government has imposed temporary restrictions on travelers coming from United Kingdom, the United States, Portugal, India, Finland, Norway, Jordan, Brazil, Denmark, Ireland, Japan, Australia, Israel, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, Switzerland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Lebanon, Singapore, Sweden, South Korea, South Africa, Canada, Spain, Austria, Pakistan, Jamaica, Luxembourg, and Oman.