Pooled swab testing for Makati residents begins

Makati Mayor Abby Binay. File photo / Makati City DRRM Office Facebook

MANILA, Philippines — Thousands of Makati residents will undergo pooled swab testing for COVID-19 this week, the city government said Thursday.

The city government’s focus is the most “exposed” and “vulnerable” sectors–public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers and market vendors.

Makati Mayor Abby Binay said about 500 public utility vehicle drivers and market vendors from Comavena, Tablanza, Guadalupe Market, and Poblacion have already been swabbed and the swab testing will continue to test 1,000 persons a day in the succeeding days.

“Today, Makati City is taking the first big step towards better, faster, and more implementable mass testing for COVID-19.  I am proudly supporting this program because this is backed by scientific research. The results of this trial will have a big impact on local governments as well as businesses and countless industries in the years to come,” the mayor said in a statement.

The city has been chosen as the pilot testing site for Project Ark’s science based, pooled swab testing method. Pooled testing will deliver faster COVID-19 test results for large groups of people.

Pooled testing in Makati uses RT-PCR test kits which is the gold standard of screening residents for COVID-19.

Binay said the city government prioritized testing for vendors and drivers as they are highly-exposed to the coronavirus disease. The city government is set to collect swab specimens from other residents from Sept. 2 until Sept. 8.

JPV