Negros Occidental, Bacolod City to follow IATF order allowing entry of fully vaccinated persons

BACOLOD CITY – Negros Occidental and Bacolod City will comply with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) directive to allow the entry of fully vaccinated persons, instead of requiring them to present a negative swab test result.

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said he would issue an executive order enforcing IATF-EID Resolution No. 124-5.

“The no RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) result rule will apply two weeks after an individual’s second dose,” he said.

Under the new IATF-EID directive, fully vaccinated people need to present only their vaccination card for interzonal travel and intrazonal movement.

“Doing away with the RT-PCR testing for travelers, who are fully vaccinated, is also one way of encouraging individuals to have themselves vaccinated against COVID-19,” Lacson said.

The provincial government is also creating QR codes for fully vaccinated Negrenses, so when they travel, their vaccination cards’ authenticity could be quickly checked, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said.

“With more people vaccinated, we can gradually return to some normalcy,” he said.

Diaz said travelers not fully vaccinated should voluntarily subject themselves to COVID-19 tests and quarantine on arrival until their negative results are out for their safety.

City Administrator Em Ang said Bacolod is also ready to comply with the IATF-EID Resolution No. 124-5, and is also developing QR codes for its vaccination cards.

The Department of Health said Monday that Bacolod remains a moderate risk area for COVID-19, while Negros Occidental is a low-risk area.

lzb