By Martin Sadongdong The National Task Force (NTF) on COVID-19 continues to monitor the status of various health facilities, as the government pursues plans for mass testing. Members of the NTF conduct an inspection at the repurposed Rizal Memorial Complex, one of the quarantine facilities in NCR.
(NTF ON COVID-19 / FACEBOOK / MANILA BULLETIN) NTF COVID-19 chief implementer and Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. said on April 8, Wednesday, that it is important to check on the condition of hospitals and testing centers, to make sure these won’t be be overwhelmed by the surge of patients once mass testing for frontliners, persons under investigation and monitoring (PUIs, PUMs) begin. On April 7, Galvez visited the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Alabang, Muntinlupa, which has been instrumental in the government's fight against COVID-19, he said. RITM is the country’s first confirmatory testing laboratory for COVID-19. At present, eight more hospitals have been accredited to process COVID-19 tests. Among the concerns raised by RITM management to Galvez during his visit were the lack of proper storage for COVID-19 test kits, as well as limited manpower and logistical capabilities. Galvez said the RITM is looking to process about 10,000 COVID-19 tests a day in the next three months as it prepares to distribute 900,000 test kits to accredited testing facilities nationwide. Earlier, Galvez bared that at least eight more hospitals are being evaluated to be accredited processing centers, which would further hasten the processing of COVID-19 test kits. Galvez said he will try to seek help from the private sector with regard to the RITM’s problem with test kit storage. As for inadequate manpower, he said among the solutions being considered is for RITM to have emergency hiring. “Focus on testing and we’ll take care of the logistics. We will help you fulfill your requirements,” he promised RITM management. Galvez earlier claimed that mass testing has already started, but Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said otherwise. Vergeire said the protocols for mass testing will be released by the Health department once it is finished. She said mass testing will not be available for everybody as frontliners, PUIs, and PUMs will be prioritized. Galvez had said PUIs and PUMs in the National Capital Region (NCR), Central Luzon (Region 3), Southern Luzon (Region 4A, 4B), Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9), and Davao (Region 11) will be prioritized for mass testing as these areas have the most number of COVID-19 cases. As of 4 p.m. on April 8, 106 new COVID-19 cases have been reported, bringing the total to 3,870, along with 96 recoveries and 182 deaths.