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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Health expert welcomes possible reimposition of mandatory mask mandate

Health expert welcomes possible reimposition of mandatory mask mandate

Published Apr 16, 2023 09:48 am
To mask up or not to mask up? Health reform advocate Dr. Anthony “Tony” Leachon backed the possible reimposition of the mandatory face mask mandate, stressing that this could help protect Filipinos against Covid-19. “Ako ay walang tutol dyan. Because of the increased mobility at dahil ayaw nating makitil ang ating ekonomiya, then we have to protect ourselves (I have no objection to that. Because of the increased mobility and because we do not want to cut our economy, then we have to protect ourselves),” said Leachon in an interview over DZRH on Sunday, April 16. The reimposition of the mandatory facemask mandate, especially in heavily populated Metro Manila, may help protect its residents, said Leachon. He then added that the educational, financial, and economic capital of the Philippines is located within the region, hence it is vital to protect the residents of the area against the disease. Face masks (Photo courtesy of Unsplash)
“Alam naman natin na kapag kumalat sa NCR, based on our experience [during] the [previous surges], kakalat din yan sa Calabarzon at aakyat din yan sa [Central Luzon]. Ang pag aaral [sa policy na ito] ay welcome sakin dahil nag i-increase talaga [ang cases] (We know that once it spreads in NCR, based on our experience during the previous surges, it will also spread in Calabarzon and it will also rise in Central Luzon. I welcome the study of this policy because the cases are really increasing),” Leachon furthered While there is an evident uptick in the country’s Covid-19 infections, the health expert reiterated that it is “not as severe” compared to what happened during the Delta or Omicron surge. Leachon, however, underscored that the increasing positivity rate indicates that the virus is “still there” and that the transmissions are still ongoing. President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 7 on October 28, 2022, allowing the voluntary use of face masks in indoor and outdoor settings. “Dapat pag-aralan [ang reimposition of mask mandate] kasi mahirap ma-stall ang ating recovery period dahil lang sa pagmamatigas nating ayaw mag mask (We should study the reimposition of the mask mandate because it will be difficult if we stall our recovery period only for the reason that we do not want to wear masks),” he concluded.

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