BY GENALYN KABILING
Metro Manila and 12 other areas will be under general community quarantine (GCQ) from August 1 to 15 as the government looks forward to the development of a coronavirus vaccine, President Duterte announced Friday.
The President has decided to retain Metro Manila under its current GCQ status while downgraded Cebu City to general community quarantine from the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) to stem the spread of the viral illness.
Other areas under GCQ are Bulacan, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Talisay City, municipalities of Minglanilla and Consolacion in Cebu, and Zamboanga City.
The rest of the country, Duterte said, is under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ).
The country’s latest quarantine status comes after recording 89,374 cases of coronavirus with 1,983 deaths and 65,064 recoveries as of July 30.
In his remarks, Duterte has appealed to the public for patience and cooperation in the implementation of heath measures, assuring them that the coronavirus vaccine is in sight.
“Para ma-shorten ang purgatory ninyo. kasi kung, maghawaan na naman ito. walang katapusan (Observe health measures to shorten your purgatory because if you don’t, there will be continued infection. and there will be no end to it),” he said.
With the coronavirus vaccines possibly available before the end of the year, the President laid down plans to acquire such medicine and prioritize the poorest of the poor, the middle class, and government troops in the free distribution.
He said he would tap the military to lead the distribution of the vaccine supply.
LOCALIZED LOCKDOWN, TARGETED MASS TESTING
The government , meantime, imposed certain conditions for the places under community quarantine to limit the spread of the coronavirus illness.
For Metro Manila and Region IV-A to keep their GCQ status, Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the National Task Force, the Department of Interior and Local Government, the Coordinated Operations to Defeat Epidemic Teams will implement in areas with high community transmission a strictly localized lockdown or enhanced community quarantine in barangays where 80% of cases are located and the publication of these barangays.
“Also part of the measures are stringent enforcement of minimum health standards; massive targeted testing, intensified tracing, and quarantine of close contacts; isolation of confirmed cases; and strict adherence to Oplan Kalinga implementation,” Roque said.
He said government hospitals in Metro Manila and Calabarzon have been directed to increase their hospital beds dedicated to COVID-19 up to 30 to 50 percent.
Private hospitals are also enjoined to increase their hospital beds dedicated to COVID-19 up to 20 to 30 percent.
“Health Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega, also the NTF Treatment Czar, is directed to monitor the compliance of hospitals in these areas and to the One Hospital Command System in NCR, Region III, and Region IV-A,” he said.
Roque said the local government units must submit daily updates and weekly comprehensive reports containing daily trend of active cases, number and percent of population, cases in community isolation facility vs. health facility vs home for priority areas or barangays under localized lockdown.
The LGU reports must also include percent of close contacts traced and percent of contacts in quarantine; number of utilization of community isolation beds; met health system capacity targets utilization; and COVID Special Teams investigations and results, according to Roque. (Genalyn D. Kabiling)
