Repatriation of Pinoys onboard Diamond Princess may be delayed —DOH

The Department of Health on Saturday said the repatriation of Filipinos onboard the COVID-19 hit Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan may be delayed since their testing for the coronavirus is not yet finished.

"We just received word from our embassy in Japan informing us of this matter na as of yesterday, kalahati pa lang ang natatapos na crew members and some passengers," DOH Assistant Secretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in an interview on Dobol B sa News TV aired on GMA News TV.

"E ang isang condition natin is they have to be tested and they turn out negative bago natin sila iuwi," she said.

Malacañang on Friday said almost 500 Filipinos from Diamond Princess will be repatriated to the Philippines on Sunday.

In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said 497 Filipinos had confirmed their intention to be flown to the Philippines over the weekend.

Vergeire said the DOH is coordinating with the Philippine Embassy in Japan and the Department of Foreign Affairs regarding possible options.

One option, she said, is repatriating first those who have been tested so far.

Another option is to delay the repatriation until all the Filipino crew members and passengers have been tested and came out negative for COVID-19 so they can be brought home in one batch, she added.

As for those who will test positive, they will be brought to hospitals in Japan for treatment, the DOH official said.

The DOH on Friday said eight more Filipinos aboard the Diamond Princess have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of infected Filipinos to 52.

Clark

Vergeire said the Filipinos aboard the cruise ship who will be repatriated will board buses upon disembarking from Diamond Princess, then will go straight to the airport for the flight to the Philippines.

The plane will land at the Clark International Airport. From the hangar, the repatriated Pinoys will be brought to New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac for their 14-day quarantine period in the same facility which housed the repatriated Filipinos from Wuhan, China.

As of posting time, the Filipinos are still aboard the cruise ship.

Vergeire said Japanese officials already want all those aboard the ship to disembark.

The DOH official added that the same protocols observed with regard to the Filipinos repatriated from Wuhan, China will be followed in the case of the Filipinos to be repatriated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

"They get to be assessed, tested pagdating sa facility," Vergeire said.

The Pinoys will be assigned one room each and will be allowed out of their rooms based on a schedule.

"We want them isolated muna... The less exposure, mas OK sa atin," Vergeire said.

"We have deployed 25 medical teams composed of doctors, nurses para mabantayan sila during the 14 days," she said.

The teams have already been briefed about their schedule and duties. "May assignment bawat floor, bawat araw," Vergeire said.

The repatriated Filipinos will be given cellphone privileges but will not be allowed to post on social media, she added. —KG, GMA News