New DOH task: How to verify vaccination cards issued abroad

This is a file photo of DOH Usec. Maria Rosario Vergeire. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/JOAN BONDOC

MANILA, Philippines — The government is looking for ways to verify COVID-19 vaccination cards issued in other countries before easing restrictions on individuals who were inoculated abroad, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the DOH reiterated that foreigners, overseas Filipino workers, and other Filipino travelers who were fully vaccinated abroad would still need to complete the 10-day quarantine in a government facility upon arrival here, followed by four days of quarantine in their destinations.

The agency issued the reminder after the quarantine period was shortened to seven days—but only for incoming passengers from abroad who were fully vaccinated in the Philippines.

“We are still looking for means to verify vaccinations from other countries. And this can be in the form of bilateral agreements with specific countries or we may use the system used by the Bureau of Quarantine which is internationally recognized,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said at the Laging Handa briefing.

For any incoming travelers who were already vaccinated in the Philippines earlier, their quarantine would be shortened to seven days, Vergeire said, referring to the resolution issued on Friday by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

Appeal for understanding

She appealed for public understanding on the slow easing of restrictions on vaccinated individuals.

“We will do this gradually because we still see … a slight increase of cases in the country, and secondly, we have not yet vaccinated that many [people],” Vergeire said.

Digital cards

Meanwhile, presidential adviser for entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion lauded the IATF resolution on the shorter isolation period, as well as the removal of RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) tests as a requirement for fully vaccinated, incoming travelers who do not show symptoms of COVID-19.

Concepcion said he hoped that restrictions would also be eased for domestic travel, as “this would greatly help the reopening of the economy.”

He suggested that vaccination cards for those inoculated in the country be issued in digital form for easier verification when used for local and international travel.