Twenty trial court officials and employees, three of them incumbent judges, have died due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19), while 1,113 officials and personnel had been and are still in various stages of infections as of April 25, 2021.
The COVID-19 figures in the trial court level released by SC Spokesperson Brian Keith F. Hosaka was confirmed by Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez, whose office supervises for the SC all trial courts in the country.
It was not known immediately how many officials and employees in the SC, Court of Appeals, Court of Tax Appeals, and Sandiganbayan have been or are still infected with COVID-19.
The country’s judiciary has about 30,000 officials and employees nationwide. They have been included in the priority list for COVID-19 vaccinations.
Early on Wednesday morning, April 28, the SC announced it has decided to grant financial assistance ranging from P15,000 to P50,000 to trial court judges and personnel who got sick and hospitalized, and died due to COVID-19 infections.
Marquez said the financial assistance – approved by Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo with the concurrence of all SC justices -- will be granted to employees affected by COVID-19 “from March 2020 until the current pandemic ends.”
In a circular, Marquez said the P15,000 assistance is for judges and employees who suffered mild to moderate illness; P30,000 for those who had critical illness that required -- among other processes -- invasive ventilation, extracorporeal oxygenation or renal replacement therapy; and P50,000 to those who died due to COVID-19 whether hospitalized or not.