San Juan mayor negative for COVID-19

MANILA, Philippines — San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora said on Wednesday that he had tested negative for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), just days after he went into a two-week quarantine.

Zamora posted a portion of the laboratory result form from the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine that showed he took the test on March 29, the same day he was notified that a staff member from his office had been confirmed as a COVID-19 carrier.

It also said Zamora underwent testing at 12:55 p.m. — less than three hours after being informed about his potential exposure. The results were released three days later.

“My COVID-19 test shows that I am negative,” said the mayor, whose city’s considerable tally of COVID-19 cases has made him a visible face of the crisis. “As per [Department of Health] protocol, I will have to finish my 14-day quarantine.”

The speed with which Zamora — who displayed no symptoms of the disease — was able to secure a test again foregrounded the yawning gulf between politicians and the vast majority of Filipinos.

More than 50% of those who died of COVID-19 in the country did not receive test results until after their passing. Test kits are limited, despite evidence that mass testing has been crucial to containing the spread of the virus in other countries.

Zamora, who was on the fourth day of his home quarantine, said he felt “perfectly OK.”

Mandaluyong Mayor Menchie Abalos is also undergoing self-isolation after the city health department informed her she had interacted with confirmed carriers.