Vaccination proof not enough to enter 6 localities in the Visayas

TAGBILARAN CITY — At least six local governments in the Visayas will still require a negative swab test result even if inbound domestic travelers are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Officials of the provinces of Bohol and Iloilo, as well as the cities of Bacolod, Calbayog, Tacloban and Iloilo, stressed that fully vaccinated individuals could still be carriers of the virus.

“Experts say that even fully vaccinated persons can still get infected by COVID-19. So it is possible that they can still be carriers,” said Dr. Yul Lopez, spokesperson of the Bohol Inter-Agency Task Force.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. announced last Sunday that fully vaccinated individuals no longer need to present swab test results if they want to travel within the Philippines.

They only need to present their vaccination card or a certificate of quarantine completion showing the holder’s vaccination status as may be issued by the Bureau of Quarantine.

Fake vaccination cards

According to Lopez, the League of Provinces has requested the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) to hold the implementation of the order.

“The league of provinces has a pending request to national IATF to respect local situations (like Bohol) and put on hold this new order,” Lopez said.

The health official also raised concern that some individuals might use fake vaccination cards just to enter the province.

“There is a big concern on the assurance that vaccination cards are genuine and not fake. If the local government unit is tricked by a fake vaccination card, it would pose a big problem since there is no testing done upon entry,” Lopez said.

Not confident

Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas and Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. were also against dropping the swab test for fully inoculated persons.

“Our doctors are not confident about lifting (the requirement for inbound travelers to present a negative swab test result upon arrival),” said Treñas.

Defensor appealed to the IATF to not implement its new protocols right away and to instead clarify some matters in the order.

In Bacolod, City Administrator Em Ang said they would continue to compel travelers to present a negative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result to protect the locality from COVID-19 and its mutations.

“The status quo remains for Bacolod City’s travel requirements,” Ang said.

In Tacloban City, Mayor Alfred Romualdez issued on Monday an executive order that allowed travelers to enter the city without their vaccination card but withdrew it on Friday.

Romualdez, in an amended order, said a negative swab test from inbound travelers would still be required until such a time the government could ensure there was a process to validate the authenticity of vaccination cards.

“Some concerns on the verification and validation process of the vaccination cards have been raised by various local government units and such concerns are yet to be properly addressed by the IATF and DOH (Department of Health),” he said.

Welcome to Negros

In Calbayog City, Samar province, a negative RT-PCR test result would still be required, according to its local COVID-19 task force.

Even those with negative test result would still have to undergo a 14-day home quarantine while those who have not been tested would be required to have a 14-day isolation at the city’s facility.

On the other hand, the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, as well as Maasin City in Southern Leyte, have decided to allow fully vaccinated individuals to enter the province without a negative swab test result.

Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on Tuesday adopted the IATF Resolution No. 124-B removing the test requirement for fully vaccinated individuals to enter the province without a swab test result.

Maasin City also implements the same rule except that fully vaccinated persons have to undergo a seven-day home quarantine and secure a letter of acceptance from the city government.

—REPORTS FROM JOEY GABIETA, CARLA P. GOMEZ, APRIL JOY FAELDEN AND KARLOWE BRIER