THE Department of Health (DOH) said none of the tens of thousands of evacuees have tested positive for Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
In a press briefing on Wednesday, November 18, 2020, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the agency has provided antigen Covid-19 tests for the families displaced by the series of destructive typhoons that hit the country in the past few weeks.
She said their priority are those experiencing symptoms. Covid-19 symptoms are similar to those of influenza and include fever, cough, fatigue, and loss of taste or smell. These manifest within two to 14 days after infection.
“Hindi naman po natin sinasabi na mate-test lahat. Ang pinakaimportante ay ma-test natin ‘yung mga may sintomas sa loob ng evacuation center. Ito po ‘yung ating priority sa ngayon,” said Vergeire.
“Hindi naman po natin maikakaila na there’s really a risk of this increased transmission kung saka-sakali because of the situation,” she added.
The DOH has deployed Health Emergency Response Teams in storm-devastated areas for the implementation of health protocols to prevent the spread of the virus and monitor those manifesting symptoms as well as provide medical, sanitation and mental/psychosocial support for the evacuees.
Vergeire said supplementary ready-to-eat food as well as medicines such as Ferrous sulfate and Calcium carbonate were also being distributed to the affected individuals.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said that as of November 18, 2020, a total of 55,921 families or 223,378 individuals were being served in evacuation centers in the typhoon-hit regions of Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol and National Capital Region (NCR).
These regions as well as Eastern Visayas region have been hit by a series of destructive typhoons since the last week of October. Typhoon Quinta (Molave) struck on October 25, Typhoon Rolly (Goni) on November 1 and Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco) on November 11. (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo/SunStar Philippines)