COVID-19 testing labs being set up in Zamboanga City

Three laboratories for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) were being built in Zamboanga City to ramp up the country's testing capacity.

In a statement on Sunday, the National Task Force for COVID-19 said the government was putting up facilities at the Zamboanga City Medical Center (ZCMC) and the Department of Agriculture PCR laboratory, along with one more such facility which would be put up by the Philippine Red Cross.

"These testing laboratories will cater to the needs of patients coming from the Zamboanga Peninsula and the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-tawi," the statement read.

"The President told me to visit all the places, especially those areas where COVID cases were undetermined due to the lack or absence of testing laboratories," said NTF chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr.

According to the latest available data, the Philippines has so far recorded a total of 9,223 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Sunday, May 03. This included 1,214 recoveries and 607 deaths. — DVM, GMA News