MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government on Sunday denied claims that it has ordered hospitals to conceal the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) deaths.
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles was responding to reports that a hospital in Metro Manila received such a directive from the government as bodies continue to pile up in the hospital’s morgue facility amid the pandemic.
“Hindi po ito totoo. Naglabas po ng pahayag ang Department of Health na wala po silang ganitong utos sa ating mga ospital. Wala pong ganitong polisiya ang inyong pamahalaan,” he said in a virtual press briefing.
Nograles also warned the public against sharing fake news.
“Mag-ingat po tayo sa mga balita o chismis na fino-forward at pino-post. Our efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak must be complemented by our efforts to contain misinformation and disinformation,” he said.
The East Avenue Medical Center, the hospital referred to in the circulating reports, confirmed that bodies were indeed piling up in their morgue, but said it was because of unclaimed bodies and limited cremation slots.
However, it has denied that there was an order not to count COVID-19-related deaths.