DOH looking to conduct 10,000 COVID-19 tests per day by end of April

The Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday said that it is aiming to conduct 8,000 to 10,000 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) tests by the end of April.

"Sa katapusan naman po ng Abril, ay ang aming goal ay umabot po tayo ng 8,000 hanggang 10,000 tests kada araw," Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a live briefing.

According to Vergeire, the country may be able to conduct more than 3,000 COVID-19 tests per day by the lifting of the enhanced community quarantine.

"Ngayoon po sa tulong ng ibang laboratories umaabot na po sa 900 hanggang 1,200 ang ating naite-test sa isang araw," she said.

"Amin po'ng tinataya na sa pagdating po ng April 14, tayo na po ay makakapag-test ng higit sa 3,000 na pinaghihinalang may COVID-19 sa isang araw," she added.

The undersecretary also pointed out that the recent approval of the test kits developed by the University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health would increase the "testing capacity" of the country.

In an earlier interview on Dobol B sa News TV, Vergeire said that 19,000 unique individuals had already been tested for the virus.

Vergeire has yet to respond to GMA News Online inquiries on the breakdown of the tested individuals. — DVM, GMA News