Science will back next lockdown verdict: Roque

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THE Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) recommendation on existing community quarantines in the country, especially in Metro Manila and Cebu City, will be based on scientific data and will make sure that COVID-19 cases will not spike or a second wave will hit the country, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said yesterday.

Roque said members of the IATF, the core group that formulates government’s COVID-19 response policies and guidelines, are expected to come up with their recommendation today, Thursday. He said serious discussions on the various lockdown levels started Wednesday afternoon.

The group will present their final decision to President Duterte on Monday, June 15.

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“What will happen in June 16? And again, I think the entire nation is eagerly waiting for the decision of the IATF. Now, I would like to stress that actually when we decide whether or not to ease up further or retain the classification, it’s always scientific data,” Roque said.

Placed under the GCQ from June 1 to 15 are the National Capital Region (NCR), Cagayan Valley (Region 2), Central Luzon (Region 3), Calabarzon (Region 4-A), Central Visayas (Region 7), Pangasinan province, and the cities of Zamboanga, Davao, Cebu and Mandaue. The rest of the country is under modified GCQ (MGCQ).

While under GCQ, health officials of Metro Manila and Cebu City have been asked to strictly monitor their health system performance capacity and compliance with the surveillance, isolation and treatment protocols. Metro Manila is the epicenter of the pandemic in the country.

Roque reiterated that factors such as the doubling time of the disease, together with critical care capacity, are primary factors that will be considered in deciding if the restrictions will be eased, retained or increased.

He said this means that even if an area has a high number of cases but it is able to provide care for the patients, even those who are in the severe or critical level, they could “graduate to a lower degree of classification” like modified GCQ or the “new normal” where there are no more quarantines but minimum health standards are still observed.

In Metro Manila, Roque said the main consideration in downgrading it to MGCQ is making sure that it “will not spark a second wave”.

“We cannot afford a second wave and that is why we are looking at the data. An indication that if we completely loosen up or almost completely loosen up, because there is no such thing as completely loosen up now, is that the cases will not spike. That is why Metro Manilans will really have to go out of their way to observe social distancing, wearing of mask and keeping healthy,” he said.

He said the same consideration will also apply to Cebu City.

“All I am saying is, we have to be very careful as far as Metro Manila and Cebu City are concerned,” he added.

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