DOH denies prioritizing politicians, officials for COVID-19 testing

The Department of Health (DOH) on Monday denied allegations of VIP testing of politicians and government officials for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) amid shortage of test kit supplies.

Interviewed on Dobol B sa News TV, Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire pointed out that most of the reported personalities who got tested were qualified for testing.

“Gusto ko lang linawin, hindi napapabayaan 'yung ating PUIs. Lahat naman inaasikaso,” Vergeire said.

“’Yun pong mga sinasabi nilang na-test na mga high level officials, most of them pumasok sa criteria namin. May exposure sila, nakapag-travel sila so they were tested,” she added.

Vergeire on testing of high-ranking government officials: Most of them pumasok sa criteria namin.

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) March 23, 2020

Until now, Vergeire revealed that there are still many politicians and government officials requesting to get tested but have to wait in line.

“Meron pa rin naman ho mga officials natin ngayon nagre-request pa rin na i-test sila, pinagbibigyan naman natin pero na nakapila po sila,” she said.

Vergeire also explained to the public that their action for some cases was due to national security reasons.

“Kailangan din intindihin ng ating mga kababayan na meron tayong ginagawa for national security reasons,” she said.

“Meron naman po talagang mga tao na iti-test namin talaga because of national security reasons, high officials in the government na specific lang. I am not saying everybody,” she added.

For his part, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said guidelines are in place to ensure fairness in the conduct of COVID-19 tests.

“Walang lamangan, walang gulangan. Iyon naman po ang ating mensahe. Ito’y para sa lahat ng Pilipino kaya nga po meron po tayong general guidelines na ipinapatupad para po pantay pantay ang lahat,” he said in a televised briefing on Monday.

According to the DOH, only persons under investigation in severe to critical condition must undergo testing for COVID-19. Asymptomatic patients with exposure history, meanwhile, should undergo a 14-day home quarantine.

A 3 p.m. DOH announcement also assured the public  that all specimens were being processed on a "first in, first out" basis, but with "courtesy accorded" to national security and health officials.

The hashtag #NoToVIPTesting trended on Twitter on Sunday night as netizens protested against politicians who were tested for COVID-19, calling out the disregard for the Department of Health’s (DOH) triage algorithm for the disease.

Netizens criticized politicians for skipping protocols on testing despite the limited number of test kits available in the country.

Twitter users also pushed hashtags #MassTestingNowPH and #CheckYourPrivilege amid reports of several politicians and government officials being tested despite not being eligible.

The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) is one of the seven testing facilities for COVID-19 in the country.

Recently, the DOH designated Assistant Secretary Ernesto Santiago as an overseer on the accredited testing facilities of RITM amid alleged VIP testing for COVID-19.

The initial department order for the designation stated that Santiago will be replacing Celia Carlos as director of RITM. However, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the order was erroneous.

“Nagkamali lang po doon sa department order. 'Yun ay kinorrect na. Dahil yung assistant secretary, Santiago,  ‘yun ang aming niluklok para maging overseer ng RITM para makatulong sa pagkumpas ng testing facilities,” Duque said.

“Dahil manipis din ang tao natin sa RITM, kailangan din natin ng makakatulong kay director Celia Carlos,” he added. --KBK, GMA News