By Azer Parrocha | Philippine News Agency
MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is on his way to a “complete recovery” after testing positive for COVID-19 on Friday, his lead physician said Monday, July 11.
In a health bulletin, Dr. Samuel Zacate said Marcos is still under home isolation but is not experiencing fever and body malaise.
Marcos had also recovered from his cough, he said.
Zacate said he also prescribed the President with additional medication to address “very mild nasal stuffiness and nasal itchiness.” Other medicines were advised to be continued.
He noted that results of Marcos’ examination earlier in the day indicate that “his vital signs are all within normal limits and exemplary.”
“He [Marcos] doesn’t experience any additional signs and symptoms. His throat still has no noticeable inflammation and no signs of respiratory compromise,” Zacate said.
Based on his clinical opinion, Zacate said Marcos “is on his way to a complete recovery”.
“This fast recovery is expected from a fully vaccinated individual with a good health status, and a history of great resilience against all adversities just like our President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.,” he added.
In a separate statement, the Office of the Press Secretary (OPS) announced that Marcos will be presiding over his second Cabinet meeting on Tuesday via teleconference.
“President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will hold his second Cabinet meeting tomorrow, July 12. As he is still in mandatory isolation, PBBM will be joining and presiding over the meeting via teleconferencing,” the OPS said.
On Friday, Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles announced that Marcos tested positive for COVID-19 in an antigen test.
A reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test was subsequently done on Marcos confirming that he was positive for COVID-19.
Marcos skipped the celebration of the 246th anniversary of the United States (US) Independence at the US Embassy scheduled Friday.
However, he attended the meeting of the Leagues of Governors and Mayors via teleconference to discuss the resumption of full face-to-face classes and the campaign for the COVID-19 booster rollout.
During the meeting, Marcos emphasized the importance of a booster campaign rollout in order to safely resume in-person classes and fully reopen the economy.
He said he wanted local government units to conduct large-scale immunization drives for booster shots targeting school children so they can safely go back to school either August or September this year.
This is the second time that Marcos tested positive for COVID-19.
He was first infected in March 2020, which supposedly happened after returning home from a trip to Spain. (PNA)
– ag
