The Department of Health (DOH) has instructed local government units to strengthen their COVID-19 response in preparation for a possible shift to alert level 2 once cases continue to substantially decline.
The strengthened measures include the implementation of granular lockdowns, active case finding, intensive testing, contact tracing, and isolation.
The DOH also recommended to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) to make Safety Seal certifications mandatory for enclosed spaces. The seal is an indication of an establishment’s compliance with health and safety protocols.
The DOH also pushed for the seven public transportation commandments observance in line with the government’s approval to gradually increase passenger capacity in Metro Manila and its nearby provinces.
“Sa lahat ng settings, kailangan paghandaan na natin how can we be able to have safe spaces, safe transportation, safe establishments. Dahil alam natin papunta na po ang direksyon natin diyan, to this new normal,” DOH USec. Maria Rosario Vergeire said.
The DOH said there are nine areas in Metro Manila with positive seven-day COVID-19 growth rates as of Oct. 28. Despite this, the ward and intensive care unit (ICU) bed utilization in the region remain below 50%.
The region also recorded a negative two week growth rate (2WGR), while the average daily attack rate (ADAR) hit 7.4 per 100,000 population.
“For the NCR to be at that alert level 2, kailangan 7 or less ang ADAR nila. So tinitingnan natin kung maibababa pa nang tuloy-tuloy,” Vergeire said.
“Kapag bumaba pa ang mga kaso, tuloy-tuloy hanggang sa isang linggo, malaki ang posibilidad na bumaba rin ang average daily attack rate ng National Capital Region to less than 7,” she added.
Meanwhile, the DOH urged those who visited the dolomite beach in Manila Bay over the weekend to wear face masks at home and monitor symptoms of COVID-19. – Report from Mark Fetalco/AG-rir
Watch the full report here:
