Senator Imee Marcos on Tuesday urged hospitals, diagnostic centers, and other health facilities to observe the proper disposal of medical waste linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Marcos made the appeal after eight children tested positive for COVID-19 after playing along the seaside of Virac, Catanduanes, where used syringes, face masks, antigen test kits, personal protective equipment (PPE), and vials of blood and urine samples were illegally dumped.
The municipal office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) found that a diagnostic center in Barangay Concepcion in Virac committed numerous violations of waste disposal protocols.
The Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 requires local governments down to the barangay level to properly collect, recycle, or dispose of trash, especially hazardous medical waste.
Marcos said violators could face court cases and heavy penalties, according to the degree of the offense.
“Any person who violates Section 48, paragraphs 14 to 16, shall upon conviction be punished with a fine of not less than P100,000 but not more than one million pesos,” Marcos said.
Marcos warned the public, especially children, against picking up or playing with medical waste to avoid catching the novel coronavirus.
Instead, the dumping of life-threatening medical waste should be reported to the authorities, the senator added.
Marcos said the Environment department collects about 1,000 tons of medical waste from hospitals, laboratories and diagnostic centers each day.
Global analysis of health care waste by the World Health Organization shows that some 87,000 tons of PPE alone were produced and sold worldwide from March 2020 to November last year.