Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. expressed support Monday, Nov. 8, on the proposal of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) to the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to lift the use of face shields in public places except in high-risk areas such as medical facilities as coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases continued to decline.

Galvez said that the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19, which he leads as its chief implementer, also has the same recommendation to the Department of Health (DOH)-led IATF when top Cabinet members held a meeting recently.

“Iyon din ang recommendation na magiging voluntary na siya at magiging required na lang sa high-risk areas (That’s also our recommendation, to have it voluntary and only required in high-risk areas,” he said in a “Laging Handa” press briefing.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) confirmed that local chief executives in Metro Manila all agreed to lift the face shield policy except in high-risk areas such as hospitals, health centers, and public transport system.

MMDA Chairman Benhur Aabalos said they will submit their official position to the IATF and once approved, the use of face shield will no longer be mandatory.

But in the city of Manila, Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso – who strongly advocated against the use of face shield – announced that the mandatory use of the said medical equipment has already been lifted by virtue of a local ordinance, Executive Order No. 42, which was scheduled for signing by the Manila City Council on Monday.

Galvez, for his part, hopes that the guidelines on the lifting of the mandatory use of face shields in Metro Manila will be released soon once the IATF approves the recommendation of the MMC.

“Hopefully within this week or as soon as possible, magkaroon na ng resolution na gawing voluntary ang face shield (the resolution will come out making the use of face shield as voluntary),” he noted.

Aside from this, Galvez revealed that the NTF will also advise the IATF to look into the reported surge of cases in China and other European countries in recent weeks so the government can decided whether or not to implement a temporary ban on the entry of individuals coming from there.

“We are closely monitoring what’s happening around the globe. Talagang kailangan magkaroon vigilance at strict observance ng minimum health standards. Ang categorizationg ng ibang countries ay very dynamic at volatile (We really need to have vigilance and strict observance of minimum health standards. The categorization of other countries is very dynamic and volatile),” he said.

According to reports, China has been experiencing another surge of COVID-19 cases as it recorded at least 133 Delta-linked cases across 11 provinces in the last week of October.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned last week that Europe has been at the epicenter of COVID-19 pandemic anew after its cases reportedly increased by 55 percent in the past four weeks.

Among the countries that saw its cases reportedly soar include Germany, United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine, Italy, France, Spain, Croatia, Slovakia, Portugal, and Czech Republic among others.