By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. on Friday said that the province is readying its facilities should there be a surge of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases.
Data from the Iloilo Provincial Health Office as of May 6, 2021 indicated 246 new COVID-19 cases in the past 1 to 2 weeks and 375 new cases in the past 3 to 4 weeks.
The same data showed that the province’s Average Daily Attack Rate (ADAR) also went down from 1.306 some 3 to 4 weeks ago to 0.857 in the recent 1 to 2 weeks.
This was based on the daily average of new cases within the past 4 weeks, which went down from 26.79 cases per day (April 8 to 21, 2021) to 17.57 cases per day (April 22 to May 5, 2021).
In epidemiology, the ADAR refers to the proportion of people who became ill with a disease in a population initially free from the said disease.
Despite the promising data, Defensor said in a press conference Friday that the province was still beefing up health facilities across the province for a surge.
The governor cited the development of spaces for negative-pressure equipment and the opening of the molecular laboratory at the Iloilo Provincial Hospital in Pototan, which also has a spare testing machine in case of any unanticipated incident.
The province is also identifying additional bed spaces in the district and provincial hospitals as well as the Provincial COVID-19 Ligtas Center at the Iloilo Sports Complex in La Paz, Iloilo City.
While they have already prepared the necessary equipment and supplies in anticipation of a surge in cases, a part of the province’s annual budget had already been set aside to procure additional materials and employ additional personnel if needed.
The preparations are based on the growing number of cases in the country, especially Metro Manila and neighboring areas.
“We have been doing that since last month, we are preparing our hospitals for a surge of COVID-19 cases. We will have additional beds if needed. The entire province will be ready for that,” said Defensor in a press conference.
He added that the provincial government has also been preparing for other health emergencies in the province including leptospirosis and dengue.
As to President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to arrest people improperly wearing face masks, Defensor interpreted this is as a call to strictly implement face mask ordinances.
He cited their contact tracing efforts which showed that most of the COVID-19 cases in the province are traced back to gatherings where people take off their face masks.
Provincial Ordinance No. 225, as amended, punishes non-wearing of face masks, with a 3-day to 10-day imprisonment penalty in the second and third and further offenses, respectively.
Available data from the Iloilo Provincial Police Office (IPPO) as of May 6, 2021 indicated that since January 2021, there have been no arrests made for the non-wearing of face masks, but there have been 1,485 warnings and 179 fines meted out to violators.
“What is important there is the message we have to strictly implement public health standards. After one year, we will still come back to one thing that is important so we won’t get sick, which is wearing masks. If we gather or meet [physically], if there’s no taking off masks, we won’t have a problem,” Defensor said.
The governor is set to issue a new Executive Order (EO) as part of their preparations, which will be presented to mayors in scheduled meetings next week.
The new EO reiterates existing regulations including opening of tourism and recreational establishments (e.g. resorts) at 50 percent capacity, but encouraging groups to only consist of members from the immediate family or same household.
Another reiteration is the requirement of negative testing result via Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) method, not less than 72 hours before the date of travel.
ADDITIONAL VACCINES
The governor also confirmed that the provincial government has been seeking to procure the Sputnik V COVID-19 from Russian firm Gamaleya Research Institute, but they have been told that orders may only be entertained by July.
This is in addition to the pending COVID-19 vaccine order the provincial government placed for 270,000 doses of AZD1222 by U.K.-based pharma company AstraZeneca.
He added that they also sent letters of intent to procure vaccines from other including Belgium-based Janssen Pharmaceuticals and U.S.-based Moderna.
He had not yet placed any intent for Chinese drugmaker Sinopharm, citing their lack of an Emergency Use Agreement (EUA) from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
This was despite Duterte being inoculated with the vaccine last Monday, by no less than health secretary Francisco Duque III.
Moderna doses are set to arrive in the country in the next two months, but this was for orders placed by the private sector through the national government.
