Robredo bats for increased COVID-19 testing

FILE PHOTO: A health worker conducts a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) swab testing at a gymnasium in Navotas City, Metro Manila, Philippines, August 7, 2020. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday batted for an increase in the number of tests for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) after citing a research group’s findings that testing has slowed down during the second half of September.

“Pero iyong sa akin lang, Ka Ely, may analysis din iyong… parang nakita ko ito sa ABS-CBN, parang mayroon silang research group. May analysis sila na sinasabi nila mas maganda nga iyong datos for September, pero kahit mas maganda iyong datos sa September, ang dami pa ding kailangan iimprove,” Robredo said in her weekly radio show, BISErbisyong LENI while she was airing her concern for the Philippines being among the nations with the highest number of coronavirus disease cases.

(For me, there is an analysis that I have seen from ABS-CBN, they have a research group which stated that the data for September is better but there are still improvements needed.)

“Ang isang pinuna nila, Ka Ely, iyong testing natin. Kasi ‘di ba noong August-September, maganda na iyong testing natin, na naaabot na natin iyong ating May targets na 30,000. In fact, may mga araw yata na nag-40,000 iyong number of tests. Pero iyong analysis noong research group, parang second half ng September bumagal iyong testing,” she added.

(One of their concerns was the testing. Isn’t it during August until September, our testing improved. We reached our May targets of 30,000 tests. In fact, in some days 40,000 tests were reached. But based on the group’s analysis, testing has slowed down during the second half of September.)

The Philippines must increase its testing capacity to achieve a target of 4 percent when it comes to the positivity rate for the respiratory disease, Robredo also noted.

“Ito, Ka Ely, dapat kasi tinitingnan natin iyong positivity rate. Ngayon, parang iyong cumulative na positivity rate natin, parang nasa 10.2 pa din, pero mas mabuti na ito kasi pumalo tayo ng 12. Ngayon, iyong daily positivity rate natin, parang mga nasa 8 or 9. Maganda na ito, pero malayo pa din sa target. Dapat, Ka Ely, ang i-target natin, huwag tayong lalampas sa 5. So kahit i-target sana natin na 4,” Robredo said.

(We must look into the positivity rate. Right now, our cumulative positivity rate is still about 10.2 percent but it is still better than 12 percent. Now, the daily positivity rate is at eight or nine. This is good but it is still far from the target. Our target should not surpass five. So at 4 percent is good.)

“Pero para maabot natin ito, Ka Ely, dapat dagdagan natin iyong tests. Dapat dagdagan natin iyong tests, kasi ito talaga iyong kailangan para mapababa iyong positivity rate,” she added.

(But to reach this, we need to raise our number of tests. We should improve our testing capacity because this is what we need to decrease the positivity rate.)

According to the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the U.S., the positivity rate helps public health officials to determine the level of COVID-19 transmission in the community as well as the testing capacity for infected residents.

It added that a higher positivity rate suggests there is higher virus transmission in the community and that there are more people with the coronavirus disease who have yet to be tested.

Earlier, the Department of Health said the public should also focus on the number of active cases and on the number of recoveries and not just on the number of cumulative cases.

/MUF