DPWH: 300 quarantine facilities with 12,200 beds total to be completed by end of August

The government is about to complete a total of 300 isolation or quarantine facilities to house COVID-19 patients by the end of August, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said Tuesday.

“By end of this month, we will be completing about 300 facilities with a total of 12,200-bed capacity,” Villar said during a virtual Palace press briefing.

The Public Works chief also serves as the isolation czar for the Philippine government’s response and recovery efforts to address the COVID-19 crisis.

Villar also said that by August 17, there will be around 210 additional intensive care unit (ICU) beds at the East Avenue Medical Center.

“Ito ‘yung ginagawa sa East Ave., sa DOH kami po tumutulong kami sa project implementation. By next week, we can expect malaki ang magiging improvement sa ICU capacity,” he said.

Pangilinan-owned MPIC is helping the government set up the facility at EAMC.

“Meron din kaming additional na gagawin sa Quirino Hospital pati sa Quezon Institute. Gagawa kami ng pop-up hospitals. Ito ay para madagdagan ang ICU capacity by 110 beds,” he added.

For this month alone, the Public Works chief said there are 95 ongoing facilities with almost 3,000 additional bed capacity. — BM, GMA News