Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 7) — COVID-19 Task Force chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said they will support the implementation of a modified enhanced community quarantine in Bacolod City due to the rising COVID-19 cases.
During a press briefing on Monday, Galvez said this is also the recommendation of Interior Secretary Eduardo Año.
“If Sec. Año will raise that to the IATF (meeting) today, we will support it,” he said.
He added that they will also be vising the city on Wednesday to assess the overall situation.
In late-August, Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia asked for assistance from the government due to reports that there were hospitals in the city that refused to admit new COVID-19 patients, saying that they have already reached full capacity or they lack manpower.
This was immediately responded to with the deployment of Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu together Galvez, Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino, and Retired Major General Mel Feliciano, the IATF deputy chief implementor in Cebu who will be helping the city in determining what actions should be done to control the spread of the virus.
Latest count of cases in the city is at 2,178, significantly more than the cases of Iligan City at 388, which was placed under MECQ starting this month.
Meanwhile, Galvez also reminded the public to remain vigilant despite an observed “flattening of the curve” in the country’s total cases.
In order to prevent another spike, he also said that people should always minimum health standards like the wearing of face masks, and proper washing of hands. The public should also know where they can be most vulnerable to infection, like in workplaces and transportation.
The coordination among local government units, private sector, and the public should also be done since the crisis does not only involve health, but also the economy. He said LGUs and the private sector should both determine the parts of the economy that can resume without sacrificing public health.
On Sunday, University of the Philippines professor and OCTA Research Team fellow Guido David said that country has already flattened the curve as shown in the reproductive rate, or the rate at which the virus is transmitted. He said this already “lowered to around 0.94 from 0.99 last week.”
Total infections in the country has reached 237,365, with 184,687 recoveries and 3,875 deaths.
