https://www.sunstar.com.ph/ |
- Government to pay, subsidize Day 7 swab test only
- Fully vaccinated Filipinos rise to 1.5M, but vaccinations slow down
- Philippines kicks off vaccination of workers
- Abu Sayyaf bomb maker killed in Basilan
- 2 dead, 1 wounded in Masbate blast
- Cops may receive vaccine in area of deployment
- NTF refutes epidemiologist, says only 113,000 missed 2nd dose
- Around 7,000 cases a day for 4 straight days
| Government to pay, subsidize Day 7 swab test only Posted: 07 Jun 2021 01:22 AM PDT ONLY the swab test conducted on the seventh day from the arrival of an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) or returning overseas Filipino (ROF) is currently paid for or subsidized by the government, the Department of Health (DOH) said Monday, June 7, 2021. In a virtual press conference Monday, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has sanctioned only the Day 7 testing for the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Discussions are still ongoing on Cebu Province's swab upon arrival policy. "'Yung sanctioned po ng ating gobyerno ay ang Day 7 testing. Ngayon, kung nagda-Day 1 testing po tayo, 'yan po ay isa sa kailangang pag-usapan, na pinag-uusapan naman po ngayon dahil ang Office of the President received the recommendations na from the different government agencies regarding the proposal of Cebu Province," Vergeire said. (What has been sanctioned by the government is the Day 7 testing. We need to talk about Day 1 testing. Discussions are ongoing because the Office of the President has already received the recommendations on the proposal of Cebu Province.) Per IATF protocol, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) pays for the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test and quarantine expenses of OFWs. The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), on the other hand, subsidizes the cost of the RT-PCR test of its members and beneficiaries of PhilHealth members. Those who are not members of PhilHealth, like some ROFs, pay for their tests, Vergeire said. A memorandum that Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia issued on May 20, 2021, a copy of which was furnished SunStar on June 5, requires two swab tests to be conducted on OFWs and ROFs. The first is upon arrival at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport and the second on Day 7 from arrival, which will be conducted by the local government unit (LGU). This memorandum also requires those with negative test results to undergo home quarantine after they are released from their quarantine hotels and complete the IATF protocol of 14 days of quarantine from arrival. The May 20 memorandum amended Garcia's May 13, 2021 memorandum, which specified the arrival protocol for transiting OFWs and ROFs, and reiterated the arrival protocol for Cebu residents based on Executive Order No. 17 and Provincial Ordinance No. 2021-04. President Rodrigo Duterte had asked the DOH to critique Cebu's arrival protocol. On Friday, June 4, Vergeire said the DOH was standing firm in the enforcement of the IATF protocol, which requires ROFs and OFWs to undergo facility-based quarantine for 10 days. They will be swabbed on Day 7 and, if negative, will be allowed to go home. They must, however, complete four more days of home quarantine. As of Monday, Vergeire said they have already submitted their recommendations to the President. (Marites Villamor-Ilano / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Fully vaccinated Filipinos rise to 1.5M, but vaccinations slow down Posted: 07 Jun 2021 12:10 AM PDT THE number of fully vaccinated individuals in the Philippines increased by 28 percent to 1.54 million in the past week, although inoculations slowed down as fewer vaccination sites reported their data, the National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19 reported Monday, June 7, 2021. As of June 6, a total of 5,965,651 doses have been administered to 4,421,319 individuals, of whom 1,544,332 have also received their second dose. The average number of doses administered per day decreased by 22 percent to 112,621 in the last seven days to June 6 from 144,402 in the week ending on May 30. However, only 937 vaccination sites submitted reports to the National Vaccination Operations Center in the past week compared to 1,124 vaccination sites in the previous week. After two consecutive weeks of administering more than one million doses per week, vaccination sites across the country administered only a total of 788,350 doses in the last seven days to June 6. Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., in his speech during the kick-off ceremony for the vaccination of priority group A4 Monday, said he believed the vaccination pace will pick up this month with the expected arrival of an additional 10 million doses. He said the target is to administer an additional four to five million doses this month. The expected shipments this month include the one million doses of Sinovac vaccine that arrived on Sunday. An additional 4.5 million doses are also expected from Sinovac this month as well as 100,000 doses of Sputnik V and 250,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine. Galvez said 2.28 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 2.028 million doses of AstraZeneca, both from Covax, are expected to arrive in the third week of June. The government targets to administer at least 500,000 doses a day by the third quarter of 2021 and increase this to 740,000 shots daily to achieve herd immunity at least in high-risk urban areas by the end of the year. (Marites Villamor-Ilano / Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Philippines kicks off vaccination of workers Posted: 06 Jun 2021 08:24 PM PDT (UPDATED) Fifty individuals from priority group A4 were inoculated Monday, June 7, 2021, to mark the start of the Covid-19 vaccination campaign among an estimated 13 million workers in the NCR Plus 8. President Rodrigo Duterte, in a recorded message, said this marks a major milestone in the government's battle against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). The government kicked off its vaccination campaign against Covid-19 on March 1, 2021, for medical workers, who make up priority group A1. "With the start of our mass vaccination for the A4 priority category, our workers in both public and private sectors will have an added layer of protection against the disease," Duterte said. Group A4 consists of:
Workers aged 40 to 59 will be given preference over those aged 18 to 39 to align the campaign with the prioritization framework that gives preference to older adults, Department of Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said. The initial target is to inoculate 13 million workers in the NCR Plus 8, which consists of the National Capital Region (Metro Manila), Metro Cebu, Metro Davao, and the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal. But Galvez, citing a recent verbal directive by Duterte to distribute the vaccines to other regions as well, said LGUs that complete the vaccination of A1 (health workers), A2 (senior citizens) and A3 (persons with comorbidities) may proceed with the vaccination of A4. Nationwide, there are a total of 35.5 million individuals who are eligible to receive the vaccine under A4, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said earlier. Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez, who was at the launching ceremony at the SM Mall of Asia Monday, said this particular vaccination campaign will support the economy's backbone. Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III said that by guaranteeing the health and safety of the workers, the economy is expected to recover from the devastation caused by the pandemic. The 50 individuals who were vaccinated Monday represented various sectors, including education, tourism, transportation, mass media, service and business process outsourcing (BPO). At a mega vaccination center in Mandaluyong City, 100 essential workers such as tricycle drivers and vendors were also vaccinated. The vaccination of the A4 priority group is being done simultaneously with priority groups A1, A2 and A3. As of June 6, more than 1.5 million individuals have been fully vaccinated. The target for 2021 is to vaccinated 58 million to 70 million Filipinos. (Marites Villamor-Ilano / Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Abu Sayyaf bomb maker killed in Basilan Posted: 06 Jun 2021 08:04 PM PDT AUTHORITIES killed an alleged "trusted bomb maker" of the late Abu Sayyaf Group sub leader Furuji Indama in Basilan before dawn Saturday, June 5, 2021, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Guillermo Eleazar said. Aroy Ittot, who was a top priority target of the Police Regional Office Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-Bar), engaged the police in a firefight at around 2:20 a.m. Saturday, Eleazar said. The police were trying to serve a warrant for Ittot's arrest for the crime of murder. Eleazar said the suspect had an M16 rifle. Police also recovered various high-powered firearms and ammunition as well as components of an improvised explosive device. Eleazar said Ittot was involved in various terrorist activities including the roadside bombing incident in Tuburan, Basilan in 2018 that targeted the convoy of Mayor Durie Kalahal of Tuburan, Basilan, and the IED attack in Barangay Colonia, Lamitan City on July 31, 2019, which killed at least 10 people including soldiers. Ittot was also implicated in the harassment of Mayor Ibrahim Ballaho of Mohammad Ajul, Basilan while conducting community service in Tuburan, Basilan. (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| 2 dead, 1 wounded in Masbate blast Posted: 06 Jun 2021 07:59 PM PDT TWO persons, including a football player from the Far Eastern University (FEU), were killed and another was wounded in an explosion in Masbate City on Sunday morning, June 6, 2021. Kieth Absalon, 21, who played for the Malaya Football Club and the FEU football team, was killed along with his uncle Nolven Absalon, 40. They were biking in Barangay Anas at around 6:45 a.m. Sunday when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off, according to Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Guillermo Eleazar. Nolven's 16-year-old son was wounded and brought to the Masbate Provincial Hospital for treatment. Eleazar said the IED was reportedly planted by New People's Army (NPA) rebels. At around 11:30 a.m. Sunday, policemen and soldiers engaged in a firefight with suspected NPA rebels in Barangay Mapiña. They later recovered several IEDs and bomb components, the Bicol Regional Police Office reported. Eleazar directed the local police to coordinate with the military and launch manhunt operations against the NPA rebels. He also alerted all police personnel, particularly in NPA-infested areas, to be on high alert and undertake target hardening measures against NPA attacks. (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Cops may receive vaccine in area of deployment Posted: 06 Jun 2021 07:50 PM PDT POLICEMEN, who are part of the vaccination priority group A4, may receive the vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) from the local government units (LGUs) they are assigned to, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Guillermo Eleazar said on Monday, June 7, 2021. Eleazar said the was approved by Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año. Eleazar said 87.68 percent of police officers are willing to get anti-Covid-19 shots. He said once the PNP gets vaccine doses allocated by the government, he will be the first one to get vaccinated to encourage the remaining 12 percent of the police force to get inoculated. Eleazar said no policeman will be forced to receive the vaccine, but he stressed that they could serve as models to convince the public that the vaccines are safe. So far, 15,700 out of the 220,000 PNP personnel have been vaccinated under priority groups A1 (health workers), A2 (senior citizens) and A3 (persons with comorbidities). (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| NTF refutes epidemiologist, says only 113,000 missed 2nd dose Posted: 06 Jun 2021 03:57 AM PDT ONLY around 113,000 vaccine recipients, not over one million as an epidemiologist reported, missed their second dose, the National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19 said. In a statement issued on June 4 and released Sunday, June 6, 2021, the NTF said those who missed their second dose have valid reasons. Some were exposed to a coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) and had to go into isolation while some had medical issues. There were also some who had been inoculated with other vaccines such as the vaccine against flu. Citing data from the National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC), the NTF said only 9.0 percent or roughly 113,000 have missed their second dose. Vaccines against Covid-19 are given at different intervals, ranging from 21 days to 12 weeks. The NTF said NVOC data showed that 1.25 million individuals have been fully vaccinated with the CoronaVac, the Covid-19 vaccine from Sinovac. A total of 2.5 million doses have been administered. For AstraZeneca, all 525,000 doses that arrived in March were administered as first dose. The second dose for this vaccine is given 12 weeks after the first. Inoculation for the second dose started only this June, the NTF said. For the Pfizer vaccines, half of the 193,050 doses that arrived on May 10 have been administered. The second dose will be given 21 days after, or within this month. The first 15,000 doses of Sputnik V that arrived were the vaccine's component 1, which is given as first dose. These were all administered in May. Another 15,000 doses of Sputnik V were the component 2, which were used as second dose three weeks after the first dose. The second tranche of Sputnik V consisting of 50,000 doses were all component 1 or first dose. The NTF said the second dose would be administered beginning the third week of June yet. "These numbers clearly show that the claim made by the health expert that more than one million Filipinos missed their second dose is unfounded and baseless," the NTF said. "Contrary to what others may think, we believe that those who received their first shot will come back to get their second shot and complete their vaccination," it added. (Marites Villamor-Ilano / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Around 7,000 cases a day for 4 straight days Posted: 06 Jun 2021 02:52 AM PDT (UPDATED) For the fourth consecutive day, about 7,000 new cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) were recorded in a day and over 100 recoveries were reclassified as deaths. The Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday, June 6, 2021, reported 7,228 new cases, 166 deaths and 7,372 recoveries. The new cases brought the cumulative case count to 1,269,478, after the removal of 23 duplicates that included 18 recoveries. The 166 additional mortalities, which included 109 cases that were previously tagged as recoveries, raised the Covid-19 death toll to 21,898. The case fatality rate remained at 1.72 percent. If the trend of over 100 deaths a day continues, the death toll is seen to hit 22,000 on Monday, June 7. With the new recoveries, the total recoveries in the country increased to 1,188,243, or 93.6 percent of the cumulative case count. With recoveries a bit higher than the new cases, the number of active cases in hospitals and quarantine facilities slightly declined to 59,337, or 4.7 percent of the total case count. Among the active cases as of June 4 were 128 health workers and 203 returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs). The DOH said 19,094 healthcare workers and 17,885 ROFs, out of 1,205,889 who have arrived in the country, have been confirmed to be positive for Covid-19. Of these, 18,869 (98.8 percent) of the health workers have recovered while 1,196,176 ROFs (99 percent) completed facility quarantine and were allowed to go home. The daily positivity rate nationwide remained elevated at 13.2 percent out of 43,442 samples tested on June 4. Three laboratories were unable to submit their data to the Covid-19 Document Repository System. Davao City is again seeing a surge as it posted the fifth highest two-week running total of new cases at 2,203 among the cities and provinces. Cavite remained at the top of the list with 3,318 cases for the period, followed by Quezon City (3,163), Laguna (3,085) and Bulacan (2,515). These provinces are, however, seeing a decline. Among the regions, the National Capital Region (NCR) and Calabarzon continued to post a decline in cases while Central Luzon, Western Visayas and Cagayan Valley are seeing an uptrend. In the last 14 days to June 5, new cases in the NCR and Calabarzon reached 13,651 and 11,410, respectively. Both are lower than the 14,716 and 12,174 cases, respectively, on May 29. Globally, nearly 173 million have contracted Covid-19, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. Of the total, more than 3.7 million had died from the disease. (Marites Villamor-Ilano / SunStar Philippines)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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