Mass testing starts today

MANILA, Philipines — The targeted testing of suspected new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases starting on Tuesday will help the government identify more patients and give them the needed health care as the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) comes closer to its goal this week of 3,000 COVID-19 tests processed daily.

IATF spokesperson and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles explained that the government was now expanding the scope to cover hospitalized patients especially the elderly, pregnant or those with preexisting illnesses, health-care workers and suspected or probable cases.

“Our priority is to test more, to identify more, so we can take care of them faster,” he said in a virtual press briefing on Monday.

He added that the testing capacity might be beefed up to 8,000 tests a day before April 30.

Nograles said there are now 15 testing centers all over the country, with the new ones located at St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City and Bonifacio Global City; V. Luna Medical Center in Quezon City; The Medical City in Pasig; Makati Medical Center and the Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory.10,000 tests daily

But Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian on Monday said the government should be able to conduct 10,000 tests for COVID-19 daily to ensure the success of the prolonged Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.“If we cannot do 10,000 [COVID-19 tests] a day, we will not be able to identify suspected, probable and confirmed cases. Then the virus will surely spread again,” Gatchalian said.

In Baguio, rapid testing was launched on Saturday, health officials said, adding that at least seven people who had tested positive were now awaiting results of their confirmatory tests.

The city health office prioritizes people who are at risk.

In Zambales province, rapid testing also started with the arrival of 3,000 test kits on April 7.

According to Dr. Noel Bueno, provincial health officer, rapid testing is intended for medical front-liners, patients once classified as probable cases and suspect cases for possible infections and high-risk groups such as senior citizens and those with medical conditions.

In Pampanga province, the Jose B. Lingad Memorial Regional Hospital in the City of San Fernando has been prepared for mass testing, according to its medical director, Dr. Monsserat Chichioco.

In La Union province, three patients had recovered and were discharged by the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center.

Mass testing for COVID-19 started in Iloilo City on Monday, targeting infected persons.

In Cebu City, Mayor Edgardo Labella said the city had acquired 30,000 test kits.Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas said among those first tested were persons exposed to an infected overseas Filipino worker repatriated to Iloilo last week.

Treñas said mass testing would be done using test kits purchased by the city from the P5.5 million donated by Ilonggos and those provided by the national government.

—REPORTS FROM JULIE M. AURELIO, MARLON RAMOS, NESTOR P. BURGOS JR., NESTLE L. SEMILLA, KIMBERLIE QUITASOL, JOANNA ROSE AGLIBOT, TONETTE OREJAS AND YOLANDA