DOH replaces One Health Pass with eArrival Card

The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday said it will replace the government’s online database One Health Pass with a new electronic arrival card due to complaints received from travelers.

At a press briefing, DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said it was discussed in a meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) to replace the One Health Pass amid reports of “inconvenience.”

“Ngayon, to ease itong restriction sa One Health Pass, itong requirement na ito ginawa nang eArrival Card. Kakaunting datos na lang ang nakalagay diyan, wala na pong masyadong hinihinging requirements,” Vergeire said.

(In order to ease this restriction with the One Health Pass, this requirement has been replaced by the eArrival Card. Only a little information needs to be put in, there are no more additional requirements.)

“Kung hindi mo ma-upload yan, meron tayong special lane sa ating airports kung saan ia-assist ka nila. Doon ka mag-u-upload at doon mo makukuha ang eArrival card mo,” she added.

(If you can't upload it, we have a special lane in our airports where they will assist you. You can upload it and get your eArrival card there.)

The One Health Pass required travelers to the country to register at its online portal and fill out a form three days before boarding a plane to the Philippines to generate a transaction number, then fill out an electronic health declaration checklist one day before boarding to receive a QR code.

Vergeire earlier said that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have been complaining that the process of verifying the One Health Pass has led to long queues in the country’s airports.

The DOH instructed the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) to review the One Health Pass to streamline the process.

Vergeire said the eArrival Card has the same objective as the One Health Pass: obtaining information including travel details and vaccination status.

She also said that the DOH is working with other government agencies to secure the travelers' data privacy.

“Yung Data Privacy Act meron tayong mga declaration na kaakibat nitong eArrival Card kung saan the data privacy will be secured so inayos po yan ng ating ahensya ng gobyerno para wala po tayong issue or risk for data privacy of our individuals,” Vergeire said.

(In the Data Privacy Act, we have declarations associated with this eArrival card where the data privacy will be secured so our government agency has arranged that so we don't have any issue or risk for data privacy of our individuals.)

The DOH OIC said the government’s online database for arriving travelers has also been the subject of scams, with the government repeatedly issuing warnings against websites demanding payment to issue fake passes.

She, however, said the One Health Pass was implemented in order to have a centralized database for all travelers going to or inside the country. — BM, GMA News