The government should consider converting all Covid-19 isolation facilities into evacuation centers for families affected by disasters and calamities.
Senator Sonny Angara made the push as he called for an assessment on the need to maintain the quarantine and isolation facilities put up during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Angara said he believes that many of these quarantine facilities are no longer being utilized now that the spread of the Covid-19 virus is under control and fewer people are now contracting the virus.
“We want to see the utilization rate of these facilities and I suspect that many of them are no longer being utilized now. We can put them to good use by converting them as evacuation centers for families affected by the typhoons that hit our country several times in a year,” said Angara, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance.
Angara noted these quarantine and isolation facilities were either newly constructed or existing structures repurposed to cater to individuals who contracted the COVID-19 virus.
Apart from the fewer reported daily cases, Angara said far less people are getting seriously ill, primarily as a result of the government’s vaccination drive.
“These days when people are infected with COVID, they usually have mild or no symptoms at all. Sinisipon, umuubo o kaya nilalagnat na karaniwan ay nawawala makaraang ilang araw ng pag inom ng gamot o kaya ay pagpapahinga sa bahay. Hindi na kinakailangan na ma-ospital o ipasok sa mga quarantine facilities (Cold, cough or fever that usually disappears after a few days of taking medicine or resting at home. It is no longer necessary to be hospitalized or admitted to quarantine facilities),” Angara said.
“Imbes na masayang ang mga pinatayo na isolation centers ay magandang magamit ang mga ito bilang evacuation centers tuwing may kalamidad lalo na sa mga lugar na hindi sapat ang imprastraktura para patuluyin ang mga nawalan ng mga tahanan (Instead of wasting the isolation centers that have been built, it would be good to use them as evacuation centers whenever there is a disaster, especially in areas that do not have enough infrastructure to accommodate those who have lost their homes),” the senator added.
The lawmaker said those who require isolation but have no means to do so at home can check several hotels that continue to cater to patients suspected of having Covid-19.
Likewise, he said conversion of isolation centers would also help decongest public schools that are frequently used as evacuation centers.
Whenever the schools are converted into evacuation centers, Angara noted classes end up being interrupted for significant periods of time.
“Instead of suspending classes indefinitely after a storm hits a locality, having these isolation facilities available for use by the displaced families, together with the multi-purpose courts or gymnasiums, will spare the schools and ensure the continuous education of our students,” he said.