Mass testing for COVID-19 will begin by May 7 and focus on Metro Manila, the “center of gravity” of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, the government said Tuesday.
In a virtual hearing before a House committee on the pandemic, National Task Force Covid-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said the mass testing would focus on persons under investigation and monitoring for possible infection, as well as front-liners.
“Once we are able to flatten the curve in NCR, we are 70 percent finished in winning the fight against COVID-19,” Galvez said.
Mass testing for other high-risk areas under the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine will be done no later than May 15, he said.
He noted that the national task force also aims to conduct 20,000 tests daily starting May 15 and 30,000 tests a day not later than May 30 with a standard processing time of 24 to 48 hours in releasing the results.
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He said all facilities will be reconfigured to the “new normal” of social and physical distancing.
Inbound overseas Filipino workers will be properly processed, with one-stop shops available for rapid testing in airports.
Arriving OFWs will undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine at a government-managed facility and would take a polymerase chain reaction swab test.
Meanwhile, President Rodrigo Duterte told the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Science and Technology to operate 24 hours during the COVID-19 crisis and authorized them to increase their workforces.
At the same time, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine and other government-run testing facilities have doubled their operating hours, running 16 hours a day now, said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
“They’re talking about the extension of hours of RITM due to the current number of people [who must be tested], they’re looking on making it 24 hours,” she added.
Vergeire said the operation of the Philippine Genome Center, the scheduled opening of new accredited laboratories for COVID-19 testing, and the arrival of additional GeneXpert cartridges will help the government achieve the daily testing capacity of 8,000 by the end of April.
According to the DOH, some 76,000 people have undergone COVID-19 test in the Philippines as of April 25.
The DOH also said they are planning and coordinating with other government agencies mass COVID-19 testing in jails.
As of April 28, there were 7,958 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 530 deaths and 975 recoveries.
There were 181 new cases, 43 recoveries, and 19 new deaths.
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The DOH said more than 3,000 Filipino doctors and nurses have been either quarantined or tested positive for COVID-19. In all, 1,245 health workers have tested positive for COVID-19, including 464 doctors and 471 nurses.
Vergeire admitted that many health workers were affected at the start of the pandemic, especially since there was not enough information about the virus.
She said among the problems initially faced was the shortage in personal protective equipment.
“We are all adjusting, she said in Filipino.
Also on Tuesday, Senator Grace Poe said it was imperative that the Philippines invests to build and enhance its expertise in disease prevention and control.
READ: COVID-19 Tracker: PHILIPPINES as of April 28, 2020
“We need to catalyze support for a proactive and efficient health system with increased capacities to prevent and control the spread of new or recurring infectious diseases,” Poe said.
Poe has filed Senate Bill No. 1450 or the “Pandemic Preparedness and Response Act” that seeks to establish a Center for Disease Control to lead in communicable disease control and prevention and fortify the country’s preparedness and response to public health crises.
Under the bill, the CDC will spearhead the formulation of a national strategy to anticipate and address public health emergencies and provide proper direction on such health threats.
“We need to strengthen our preparedness and become far more equipped in the face of continuing health risks. We all have a stake in this,” Poe said.
READ: Frontliners undergo mass testing in Parañaque