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'Step on gas on COVID-19 testing, tracing, treatment,' Kiko urges gov't
'Step on gas on COVID-19 testing, tracing, treatment,' Kiko urges gov't
The country could face a "humanitarian crisis" if the government would not step up its efforts to test, trace, and treat as many COVID-19 cases as possible to cut the transmission of the novel coronavirus, Senator Francis Pangilinan warned on Saturday, April 3.
“Step on the gas. Testing, tracing, isolation, and treatment are the four wheels of the anti-COVID ambulance. Government efforts must be toward accelerating the ambulance to outpace the infection and save all of us," he said.
"When our medical front-liners are getting sick, the threat of collapse our health-care system is big. We must control the spread of the disease,” he said.
There could a "humanitarian crisis that will overwhelm the country and wipe out families", he warned.
Pangilinan cited the temporary closure of the Philippine Orthopedic Center's outpatient services after 117 of its 180 hospital staff tested positive for COVD-19.
As COVID-19 cases spiked over the last two weeks, public and private hospitals are swamped with patients, and are running at critical, if not over-capacity, Pangilinan said.
On Friday, April 2, the Philippines recorded 15,310 new confirmed COVID-19 cases -- its highest single-day tally so far. On Saturday, April 3, new coronavirus infections in the country numbered 12,576, pushing up the total number of COVID-19 cases recorded in the country to 784,043.
Pangilinan urged the national and local government units to "smoothly lay down necessary preparations so they can act quickly and get the shots in people's arms once the vaccines arrive."
He said the government should also be "relentless" in its information campaign about the vaccinations, including the process of registration and actual inoculation.
“I repeat, there should be free mass testing to identify who is infected with COVID. Those who go on self-isolation and their family must be assured of food,” Pangilinan also reiterated. He cited his party mate and Vice President Leni Robredo’s mobile free mass testing initiative called "Swab Cab".
He also agreed with Robredo’s suggestion to incentivize testing through cash assistance equivalent to at least the minimum wage for every day of self-isolation.