By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Even without clear guidelines from the national government, the Department of Trade and Industry-Region 6 (DTI-6) said it is still monitoring the selling and buying of face shields within the region.
This, after national and local authorities ordered the mandatory wearing of face shields in the wake of continuing spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the country.
DOTr Undersecretary Artemio Tuazon Jr. on Tuesday issued Memorandum Circular 2020-014 directing the wearing of face shields in all forms of public transportation, where they are allowed, starting Aug 15, 2020.
Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas on Thursday ordered public market vendors to wear face shields starting Aug 7.
Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. on the same day said he was considering following the city’s suit to wear face shields in public places.
In a phone interview, DTI-6 Director Rebecca Rascon told Daily Guardian they still don’t know whether the regulation of sale of face masks falls under their agency or the Department of Health (DOH).
Regulation of the sale of other medical supplies, which are heavily used during this COVID-19 pandemic, such as face masks and rubbing alcohol have been placed under the DOH’s authority.
“Normally, commodities or products that are placed under the jurisdiction of the DTI for purposes of monitoring, we are informed early [by the central office]. But in this pandemic, face masks and alcohol were placed under the DOH’s jurisdiction last March. In this case, with face shields, it hasn’t been cleared whose jurisdiction it falls under, whether it is of the DTI or the DOH,” Rascon said.
Rascon added that due to the lack of guidance, they cannot set the Suggested Retail Price (SRP) and the standard specifications of face shields, as these have not yet been listed as a basic commodity.
Prevailing prices of face shields as surveyed by Daily Guardian from various online and offline suppliers in Iloilo City range from as low as P 35 to as high as P 150 apiece.
“When DTI is asked on the issuances that pertain to regulating prices or supplies of face shields, we don’t have a directive to regulate the price to a certain amount because they haven’t been listed as a basic commodity wherein it has to have an [SRP],” Rascon added.
She said they decided on Thursday to monitor the sale of face shields for the purpose of sharing the information with the DTI Central Office in Manila and other agencies.
“We had our Executive Committee meeting between the provincial directors, the Assistant Regional Director, and myself. We decided that there would be no problems in monitoring the sale of face shields. We can monitor the availability and the price in the markets. We are doing this because the public will still ask who is doing the job [of monitoring]. We’re monitoring just in case so we can have a database. That will have a big help to the public, as well as our partner agencies, such as the DOH and the DOTr,” Rascon said.
The DTI director said that they had already communicated with the DOH-Western Visayas Center for Health Development (DOH-WV CHD), which had informed them to relay concerns to the health agency if there were any.
She added that the DOH Central Office might come up with an issuance.
“We’ve talked to the regional DOH. They told us that if there were any complaints, inquiries or concerns, we can relay it to them or refer the consumers to them. They informed us that their central office had directed them to monitor as well, so definitely there may be issuances regarding face shields, but that will come from DOH in Manila,” she said.
She also expressed relief that many people are coming out with their Do-It-Yourself suggestions to comply with authorities’ face shield requirements.
“This is unlike face masks before where we weren’t prepared because they suddenly went out, but now, there are many face shields coming out on the internet. A lot of creative guides are saying we can make Do-It-Yourself face shields to comply with the [DOTr’s] directive,” she said.
‘NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR FACE MASKS’
In a press briefer on Friday, DOH-WV CHD spokesperson Dr. Renilyn Reyes confirmed that the DOH has not issued anything on face shields, but these have been raised in discussions within the region and in Manila.
“The [DOH] hasn’t released any memorandum regarding the use of face shields, but there have been several discussions during the visits of Secretary Galvez, and there are ongoing discussions at the DOH Central Office as to the use of face shields,” Reyes said.
Reyes, however, clarified that face shields should not be used as a substitute for face masks, but rather used as a physical distancing measure alongside the cloth-based coverings.
“There are studies we’re looking at which state that face shields cannot be used as substitute for face masks. Our best PPE outside of hospitals, while we’re in the community, are face masks. We can use either reusable cloth masks or disposable surgical masks. If we’re asked which is the better option, surgical masks are better. With regard to face shields, based on studies, issuances by the [United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention], and other legitimate researches that these are physical distancing measures. If we use them with face masks, we are better protected,” she clarified.
