Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año said on Sunday that he tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) for the second time.

DILG Secretary Eduardo Año
(PCOO / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

Año said that he had PCR test Friday and test result came out Saturday.

He said that he “began experiencing flu-like symptoms, including a sore throat and body aches" on Aug. 13.

“I began my self-quarantine and got myself PCR tested on Aug. 14,’’ Año said.

Año is currently being closely monitored by his doctors and is now in isolation.

“I make this announcement to call the attention of all persons I had close contact with to go on self-quarantine, observe any symptoms in accordance with DOH guidelines, and take appropriate action,’’ he added.

The DILG chief said that being infected with the virus again emphasizes the severity of the virus.

He called on the public anew to practice minimum health standards, specifically wearing face masks, washing hands frequently, and practicing social distancing.

“By adhering to these guidelines, we can all help keep our loved ones and our community safe,’’ Año said.

Año first contacted the disease last March but recovered after several weeks.

IATF meeting

Malacañang said that the meeting of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for
the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases and the address of President Duterte to the nation on Monday will proceed without Año.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said that everyone else who will see the President in Davao City on Monday have tested negative.

“We were all tested pursuant to the requirement of Mayor Sara (Duterte) at
least 72 hours before entry into the city,” he said.

“All those seeing PRRD on Monday tested negative except for Secretary Año,” he added.

Duterte will announce on Monday the quarantine classification of Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal who are all under the Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) until Aug. 18.

According to Año, he began having flu-like symptoms such as sore throat and body pains on Aug. 13.

He had himself tested and began self-quarantine the following day. The test result came back positive on Saturday night.

Firms urged to build isolation facilities

The DILG said firms need to build isolation facilities for their personnel to help contain the transmission of COVID-19 in the country.

DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya stressed this after COVID-19 positive workers of a company in Laguna had infected their families.

Malaya, in an interview over GMA News, appealed to companies to set up isolation facilities to prevent employees suspected to be COVID-19 positive from transmitting the virus to their families.

Contact tracing

The DILG said that aggressive contact tracing is a game changer against COVID-19 in the country.

Año cited that “aggressive contact tracing is the key to the success of the
COVID-19 response in Metropolitan Cebu and Baguio City.”

“We did a lot of things in Cebu but among all our interventions, we are making progress now because of contact tracing,” Año said.

He maintained that aggressive contact tracing is vital in battling the country’s COVID-19 cases which have surges in the last couple of days.

“It will be a ‘game changer’ to the entire country if Congress will allocate funds for the hiring and deployment of additional contact tracers under Bayanihan 2,’’ Año said.

While contact tracing efforts are already being done by more than 7,000 contact tracing teams, Año still cited the need to hire at “least 50,000 more to meet the WHO recommended ratio of one contact tracer for every 800 people.”

Currently, the country has more than 85,000 contact tracers.

“With a projected population of 108 million this year, we need 50,000 more contact tracers to attain the ideal number of 135,000 contact tracers to significantly ramp up our contact tracing efforts in all parts of the country but with emphasis on hot spots like Metro Manila and surrounding provinces,” he added.

The DILG chief noted the current number of contact tracers cannot meet
the recommendations of Contact Tracing Czar Mayor Benjamin Magalong of “a 1:37 patient to close contacts ratio in order to cut the transmission of the disease.”

Dr. Takeshi Kasai, director of the WHO office for Western Pacific, and Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, country representative, has also recommended to the DILG the ramping up of the country’s contact tracing efforts as part of the WHO’s continuing documentation of the country’s best practices in response to the pandemic.

The WHO has recognized as a best practice the new contact tracing system developed by Magalong which combined digital technology and cognitive interviews by contact tracers.

Chito Chavez and Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos

DILG’s Año tests positive anew for virus