21-day quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure still unnecessary, experts say

A 21-day quarantine period for persons who have been exposed to the COVID-19 virus is unnecessary at this time, health experts said on Tuesday.

According to Maki Pulido’s report on “24 Oras,” countries such as Hong Kong and China have lengthened their quarantine period to 3 weeks or 21 days due to the various variants of COVID-19.

“Hindi din po naman kailangan matakot ‘yung tayo na bakit itong mga bansang ito, 21 days kaagad,” Ivan Imperial, a professor at the University of the Philippines, said.

“So maari po kasing iba, maaring nag wo-work sa atin ‘yung 14 days, tapos nako-control so bakit po natin pahihirapan pa na i-extend ‘yung 21?” he added.

Health reform expert Dr. Tony Leachon said authorities may study and monitor cases in the Philippines that were found to be positive with the UK variant.

“Pilot test doon sa mga ina-isolate nating mga cases. And then once na-confirm natin na meron pa palang residual virus or meron pa ring antibodies na matagal bumaba. There are many ways on how to do that, eh. And then we can implement sa buong NCR,” Leachon said.

The Task Force on the UK variant has no current recommendation on the 3-week quarantine while the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases will still talk about it.

However, authorities said current data showed that a 14-day quarantine is enough to curb the spread of the virus. 

Citing the studies of experts, the Department of Health said that the modes of transmission are still the same and that no change occurred in the incubation period.

“It doesn’t mean that just because Hong Kong did, we should follow. It’s not automatic. We have to know the reasons why,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said. -Joahna Lei Casilao/NB, GMA News