Gov't: Quarantine facilities must provide isolation rooms

Malacañang said Friday that the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) has mandated the COVID-19 quarantine facilities in the country to provide isolation rooms.

Acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said such a measure is provided under IATF Resolution 157.

"The recommendation of the DOT [Department of Tourism] for hotels used as quarantine facilities to be likewise used as isolation facilities is adopted, subject to specific protocols that may be issued by the BOQ-DOH (Bureau of Quarantine-Department of Health)," according to the IATF resolution.

"This was done so that individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 while in quarantine will be easily isolated rather than traveling to another facility," Nograles added.

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Hans Cacdac earlier said that the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the country has resulted in RT-PCR COVID-19 test laboratories being swamped by specimens waiting to be processed, thus delaying the turnaround time for the release of the test results. 

“So parang may domino effect itong ano eh, ‘yung dami ng mga nagpapa-test ngayon. Hindi lamang sa mga umaalis kundi pati sa nanunumbalik,” OWWA Administrator Hans Cacdac said in a report on GMA’s “24-Oras Weekend.”

The Philippines has already scrapped mandatory quarantine for fully vaccinated travelers from Green List countries or areas with low risk of COVID-19 infection, provided that they present a negative RT-PCR test taken 48 hours before departure in country of origin and that they self-monitor for any sign or symptom for seven days, with the first day being the date of arrival.

The list of Green List countries from January 16 to 31 as provided under IATF Resolution 157-B include:

• Bangladesh
• British Virgin Islands
• Djibouti
• The Gambia
• Hong Kong
• Japan
• Montserrat
• Oman
• Saba (Special Municipality of The Kingdom of the Netherlands)
• Sierra Leone
• Timor Leste
• Benin

ADVERTISEMENT

• China
• Equatorial Guinea
• Ghana
• India
• Kosovo
• Morocco
• Pakistan
• Saint Barthelemy
• Sint Eustatius
• Uganda
• Bhutan
• Cote d Ivoire
• Falkland Islands (Malvinas)
• Guinea
• Indonesia
• Kyrgyzstan
• Niger
• Paraguay
• Senegal, and
• Taiwan

The Philippines earlier recorded 34,021 new COVID-19 cases in a day, the highest since the pandemic hit the country in March 2020. —LBG, GMA News