DOH orders 'heightened surveillance' of travelers amid COVID-19 surge in China

The Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday directed its units to maintain "heightened surveillance," particularly of travelers arriving from China amid the spike in COVID-19 cases in the East Asian country.

Under Memorandum No. 2022-0578, the department tasked the directors of all Centers for Health Development (CHD) to ensure continuous coordination with concerned agencies and local government units in their respective regions to monitor and provide assistance to the intensified implementation of border control protocols at all ports of entry, including but not limited to:

• heightened surveillance on all respiratory symptoms in all travelers and conveyances coming from China, including a thorough review of the submitted Maritime Declaration of Health and the health part of the Aircraft General Declaration;
• reporting of symptomatic passengers intercepted during arrival screening
• submission of reports of COVID-positive travelers from Points of Entry;
• information dissemination among travelers regarding COVID-19 infection prevention and control;
• coordination with airport and seaport terminal authorities for possible re-establishment of testing of inbound travelers from high-alert countries; and
• coordination with port and airport authorities and partners on identifying areas for the display of information, education, and communication (IEC) materials

All CHDs were also directed to continue the strict implementation of the Updated Guidelines on Minimum Public Health Standards, as aligned with Department Memorandum 2022-0433, as well as other relevant COVID-19 surveillance and mitigation measures, including but not limited to:

• implementation of updated testing and isolation protocols;
• monitoring of hospital utilization rates and organization of respective local referral networks;
• preparation and augmentation of resources, especially telemedicine providers, for a possible increase in patients with respiratory symptoms;
• reiteration of messages emphasizing the importance of layers of protection (mask use, getting the most updated vaccines, and self-isolation if unwell) for the general public

"Undersecretaries of the Field Implementation and Coordination Team are directed to monitor compliance with the directives provided herein; in parallel, all CHD Directors are directed to provide regular updates to their respective Undersecretaries," the DOH said.

The DOH earlier directed the Bureau of Quarantine (BOQ) to intensify quarantine protocols in handling travelers from China amid the surge in COVID-19 cases there.

The Health Department said currently, foreign travelers who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 are required to present a negative pre-departure antigen or RT-PCR test result before travel or upon arrival. 

In response to the surging cases, the United States, Italy, Japan, India and Malaysia have recently announced that they would increase health measures for travelers from China.

The lack of transparent data from China — particularly about viral genomic sequencing — is making it "increasingly difficult for public health officials to ensure that they will be able to identify any potential new variants and take prompt measures to reduce the spread," US officials said Tuesday.

India and Japan have already said they will impose mandatory PCR testing on all passengers from China. —with Agence France-Presse/VBL, GMA Integrated News