A patient receives a COVID-19 vaccine. (Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)
MANILA, Philippines — Fully vaccinated close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 patients are no longer required to undergo quarantine and should only do “symptoms monitoring” under Alert Level 1, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said Tuesday.
According to DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya, only people unvaccinated or partially vaccinated against COVID-19 should undergo quarantine under Alert Level 1 because fully inoculated people already have protection against the severe respiratory disease.
He said fully vaccinated close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 patients should immediately communicate with their health care provider about the steps they should do.
“For the unvaccinated, kung hindi tayo bakunado, kailangan tayo mag-quarantine, pero kung bakunado tayo, symptoms monitoring na lang at wala ng mandatory isolation or quarantine,” Malaya said in a Laging Handa public briefing.
(For the unvaccinated, we need to quarantine but if we are vaccinated, we can just do symptoms monitoring and no more mandatory isolation or quarantine.)
He urged the public to self-regulate, practice good hygiene, obey mask mandate, get vaccinated, and stay at home if they are showing symptoms or feeling unwell. For those who test positive for the coronavirus, he asked them to immediately inform their close contacts.
Malaya said that under COVID-19 Alert Level 1, self-discipline among the local government units (LGUs), establishments, and individuals will prevail as authorities would no longer impose strict protocols such as checkpoints.
On the part of LGUs, Malaya said they should strictly enforce the mask mandate, continue to vaccinate their residents, and check establishments in their jurisdictions if they are complying with health protocols.
On the part of establishments, he said they should make sure that they will not accommodate individuals who are not wearing face masks, will check the vaccination status of their customers, all their employees are vaccinated, their place has good airflow, and their premises undergo regular disinfection.
“Kung masama ang ating pakiramdam, stay at home if you are unwell and kung tayo nagpositibo, let’s inform our close contacts,” Malaya said.
The national government has placed Metro Manila and 38 other areas under COVID-19 Alert Level 1 from March 1-15.
Under Alert Level 1, the wearing of well-fitted masks is still required, whether outdoors or indoors, including public transportation.
All private offices and workplaces, including public and private construction sites, may operate at 100% capacity but they may also continue to have flexible and alternative work arrangements.
Public transportation will likewise be at full seating capacity.
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