Test employees for COVID-19 upon returning to work – Garin

Iloilo Representative Janette Garin on Monday reiterated that employers should have their employees tested for COVID-19 upon returning to work to ensure that they will not be unknowing spreaders of the novel coronavirus.

In a virtual media forum, Garin, a former health secretary, said that while 40 to 50% of COVID-19 patients were asymptomatic, the load of "very infectious" virus that they have was already high even on the second or third day before they actually exhibit symptoms up to the seventh to the 14th day of infection.

At the same time, 80% of actual symptomatic patients were mildly asymptomatic that "they don't feel anything at all," so even if they think they are asymptomatic, they are actually mildly symptomatic, she added.

"Our problem is if we increase the number of asymptomatics, mildly symptomatics, the 20% remaining that will have moderate to severe COVID is frightening because it will consume the beds in the hospitals, it will deplete our healthcare workers," Garin said.

"Whether to test or not to test, it's a no brainer, we really have to test," she added.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III earlier said that employees need not undergo COVID-19 testing on returning to work during the eased quarantine restrictions.

Bello added that only those showing symptoms of COVID-19 should be required to undergo the test.

The Department of Health had also offered the same guidance.

"We have emphasized that symptomatic screening is ideal, and test only when symptomatic,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire in a statement.

“[The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases] Resolution stated that in no case should testing be a condition for a return to work, so we expect that specific agencies will implement IATF Resolutions," she added.

But Dr. Minguita Padilla, an advocate for mass testing, said that there had been studies that concluded that asymptomatic individuals potentially carry and can even infect other people.

"Is there a chance of asymptomatic transmission? Yes, there is. Papers have been published out of China, documenting asymptomatic transmission... They have followed these people who are asymptomatic and they are super-spreaders, some of them. So even if they seem well, they can have it,"  said Padilla.

"Now, that being said, it's better if we could test," she added.

Padilla was involved in Project ARK (Antibody Rapid Test Kit), a private sector initiative that promotes mass testing as part of a comprehensive strategy to reopen the economy after the lockdown.

She said that one solution to prevent a second major wave of infections was to "live as though you are infected and live as though around you are infected."

"Still keep practicing social distancing, wearing of the mask, washing of hands. Because that's the only way," Padilla said.

"But if we could test, it would really be much better because there are many things we can pick up and identify that we cannot identify just by presuming that just because you are asymptomatic, you don't have it," she added.

As of May 25, 14,319 cases of COVID-19 had been reported in the Philippines, with 873 deaths and 3,323 recoveries. — DVM, GMA News