The Iloilo City Goverment’s COVID-19 team is implementing stricter quarantine measures for returning locally stranded individuals (LSIs).
Mayor Jerry Treñas, who heads the COVID-19 team, was irked by “many reports of LSIs violating the 14-day quarantine.”
The team decided to disallow LSIs to go on home quarantine.
“They either go on hotel quarantine or local government facility quarantine for 14 days,” Treñas said in a statement.
Rapid test kits will no longer be used. The team agreed to rely only on RT- PCR tests, which are being used by Department of Health (DOH)-accredited COVID-19 testing laboratories.
“We are calling on DOH to assure early results for the swabs. At the moment, we have more than 1,000 swab results outstanding. Please be guided accordingly,” Treñas said.
The RT-PCR test, according to the DOH, is the “gold standard” for confirming if a person is infected with the novel coronavirus.
In Jaro district, a 22-year-old LSI was found to have attended a party in Barangay Camalig while waiting for the result of his/her RT-PCR test.
The patient, who tested negative in the rapid test, turned out positive for COVID-19 in the confirmatory test.
Due to the violation, Punong Barangay Nestro Loma said they placed 20 houses in Zone 5 on lockdown to halt the spread of COVID-19.
In La Paz district, a 40-year-old returnee allegedly roamed around the city despite being under a 14-day mandatory quarantine.
“Let us all be responsible citizens! This is the only thing I ask from you so we will be able to win against this virus,” Treñas said.IMT
