By Daniel Manalastas
The Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday that extending the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) for another two weeks in the National Capital Region (NCR) and nearby provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal, the areas in the NCR Plus bubble, will help curb the spike in COVID-19 cases.
In the House committee on health hearing yesterday (March 30), DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told lawmakers that COVID-19 infections in the NCR and Region IV-A (Calabarzon) are continuously rising.
“We may see a continuous decline of cases by further extending ECQ for more than two weeks, or two more weeks, as well as marked improvements in our minimum public health standard,” she said.
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Earlier, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) will meet on April 3 to finalize the decision on whether or not to extend the ECQ.
The ECQ is currently effective in the NCR Plus bubble until April 4 to help curb COVID-19 infections.
Roque earlier said there is a 50 percent chance of a prolonged lockdown.