The Philippine government will study whether to require anew the use of face shield as an additional layer of protection amid the threat posed by the Omicron variant.
In an online briefing on Sunday, National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 chief implementer Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. said Health Secretary Francisco Duque III is among the supporters of bringing back “any protections” that can be used.
“Kasi some people form the WHO [World Health Organization] believe, kaya tayo nakaroon ng magandang resulta sa Delta as compared to others is because of the added protection of face shield,” he said.
During the rollout of the National Vaccination Days, Duque said face shields should not be discarded in high risk areas.
“Kung mayroon tayong nakitang mabilis na pag-akyat ng mga kaso, magandang magkaroon ng karagdagang proteksyon,” he said.
“So ‘yung face shield, huwag natin isasantabi kasi ‘yan maganda pa rin ‘yan sa konteksto ng 3Cs [closed spaces, crowded places, and close-contact settings],” he added.
Malacaῆang said on Monday noon that the mandatory use of face shield in healthcare settings and its voluntary use in other spaces remains, and noted that face masks are still required.
“I would like to encourage ‘no ang ating mga kababayan kung kaya naman po magsuot ng face shield ay magsuot tayo ng face shield para dagdag proteksiyon na lamang po,” Acting Palace Spokesperson Karlo Nograles said.
The Palace also advised practicing “safety first” as the public plans to celebrate the holiday season next month.
Meanwhile, Nograles said the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases is finalizing the parameters for the de-escalation of areas to Alert Level 1. –PTV News, with reports from Patrick de Jesus/AG-rir
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