The Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines (PHAPi) is supporting the decision to place more areas across the country under COVID-19 Alert Level 1 so long as minimum public health standards are observed.
In the May 3 Laging Handa briefing, PHAPi President Dr. Jose De Grano said the number of individuals being admitted to hospitals due to COVID-19 remains low.
“Hindi naman natin mapigilan iyong mga tao sa paglabas lalo po sa mga rallies. But ang pinaka-importante po ay sundin po nila iyong pagwi-wear po ng mask at nang sa ganun po ay hindi po sila masyadong makahawa at manghawa kung mayroon man silang sakit,” he said.
“Sa private hospitals po halos kakaunti ang mga nagpa-positive at ito pong nagpa-positive talaga karamihan dito ay yung mga immunocompromised na nagkakaroon lang po, siguro nahahawa,” he added.
With lower hospital admissions, De Grano said they are prepared to send medical teams to local government units on Election Day to respond to voters’ medical concerns, including heat stroke incidents.
The group also assured that it is ready to respond to a possible COVID-19 case resurgence following the conduct of campaign rallies.
The Department of Health (DOH) said the country remains as minimal risk case classification for COVID-19, while Regions 4B, 5, and 8 are under low risk.
“Ang naitalang bahagyang pagtaas ng mga kaso ay hindi pa nakakaapekto. Malayo pa po ito sa ating healthcare utilization rate ng bansa maging sa mga rehiyon na nananatiling low risk or low healthcare utilization rate,” DOH Sec. Francisco Duque III said.
Vaccination, BA.2.12
With more than half of private schools opening for face-to-face classes, Duque said the government is set to conduct massive vaccination for individuals aged five to 11 years old.
The National Task Force Against COVID-19 said around 10 million doses are available for administration for the younger age group.
“Pagka um-attend sila, parang ‘yung dati nung mga bata tayo, i-injection-an na tayo ng kanilang mga infirmary ng mga iba’t ibang bakuna like measles, ‘yung sa polio. So, gagawin din natin ‘to for COVID for the basic learners from five to 11 years of age,” Duque told President Rodrigo Duterte.
Meanwhile, the DOH urged the public to be cautious amid the threat of the highly transmissible Omicron sub-variant BA.2.12 which has not yet been detected in the country.
However, the DOH confirmed that 15 fully vaccinated foreign tourists in Palawan are being monitored after testing positive for COVID-19, including two who experienced mild symptoms on April 27 and 28.
Fourteen are under isolation and one is admitted to a hospital.
“It’s an isolated case. Hindi po natin alam kung anong klaseng variant pa ang makikita sa kanila dahil ise-sequence pa lang, di pa naproseso ang kanilang samples,” DOH USec. Maria Rosario Vergeire said.
“They were all immediately isolated, hindi na gumawa ng activity sa pinuntahanang lugar. Sila ay nag-submit sa management ng local government kung saan nasa isolation facility po sila,” she added. – Report from Mark Fetalco/AG
