Private sector effort sets 24,000 more tests per day

COLLECTIVE WORK Boxes of test kits and other medical instruments are inspected before their delivery to Cebu, Iloilo and other provinces. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — An additional 24,000 coronavirus tests per day will complement the government’s testing capacity by the end of June, according to Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion.

“I believe that extensive testing is key to protecting public health and the means to help our economy bounce back successfully from this crisis,” Concepcion said in a statement on Monday.

The boost in the government’s testing capacity will be made possible through the Project ARK-PCR (antibody rapid test kits-polymerase chain reaction) Initiative and its partner companies.

Project ARK-PCR is a private sector initiative to make mass testing available nationwide. To date, it has generated a total of 1,209,521 rapid test kits.

Economic strategy

Utilizing both rapid antibody testing and RT-PCR testing is a strategy that the group has invested in order to restart the economy, Concepcion said.

“This, while keeping people safe and guarding against the dreaded second wave,” he said.

Concepcion also said adequate swab testing centers would also be made available for those who turn out positive in the rapid antibody testing initiated by Project ARK, which also paved the way for contact tracing in areas where there were silent transmissions.

In the coming weeks, Go Negosyo, Ayala Foundation and San Miguel Foundation, together with the House of Representatives, will be activating and automating more laboratories such as those in Adella Serra Ty Memorial Medical Center, Bataan General Hospital and Medical Center, Bicol Regional Diagnostic and Reference Laboratory;

Bohol Gallares Hospital, Butuan Medical Center, Cagayan De Oro Medical Center, Cotabato Regional Medical Center, Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital, Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Sanitarium, General Santos Medical Center;

Ilocos Training Regional Medical Center, Isabela Doctors General Hospital, La Union Medical Center, National Center for Mental Health, National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Northern Mindanao Medical Center, Ospital ng Palawan, Perpetual Hospital-Biñan, Quirino Memorial Medical Center, San Lazaro Hospital, UERM Memorial Medical Center, and West Visayas State University Medical Center.

—TINA G. SANTOS