The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) has clarified that the swab test offered by the government is free of charge for returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
The OWWA has received reports from OFWs that they have been asked to pay roughly P20,000 for their RT-PCR test. The department insisted that they must not pay anything for the test, results, and their chartered flights in accordance with the mandate of President Rodrigo R. Duterte to take care of the OFWs.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) are currently investigating private companies conducting RT-PCR tests for OFWs and offering a quicker way to get the results.
However, according to the One Stop Shop, “private laboratories started operations on 27 July, and are covered by a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Task Group on Management of Returning Overseas Filipinos (TG MROF). Both charge the fee of PHP 4000, as approved by the TG MROF, and issue results within 48 hours.”
It added that “there are, however, extreme cases (i.e. death in the family or emergency medical condition, etc) when OFWs request for a swab test with PAL or PAGSS for faster results and clearance.”
The One Stop Shop explained that “in such cases, the OFWs have to seek clearance first from OWWA. When cleared, the request is communicated with the OSS”. This has been denied by OWWA, stating that it does not ask private companies to do so even if the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) has stopped its processing of specimen. Instead, it only asks for a follow up in government laboratories for the procedure.
Currently, there are 17 laboratories processing the specimen of OFWs while the Bureau of Quarantine releases the results within 3 to 7 days. – Report from Louisa Erispe
