Health workers and other frontliners were the first batch of persons who had undergone the initial free mass testing activity held in Parañaque City, Mayor Edwin Olivarez said on Tuesday.
Olivarez said the first mass testing activity was conducted simultaneously in four testing sites after the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of rapid testing kits donated to the city government by a private company.
The new isolation facilities are located in four public schools: San Antonio High School, Dr. Arcadio Santos National High School both in Barangay San Martin de Porres; Parañaque City College in Barangay San Dionisio and Parañaque National High School (Main), also in Barangay San Dionisio.
“This is a very welcome development in our fight against COVID-19 because this will enable us to identify possible cases for early isolation and help curb the spread of this deadly disease,” Olivarez said.
The city’s Health department disclosed that there were at least 400 suspect cases of COVID-19 in the city and the initial mass testing will be able to cover them.
Some 285 health workers and other frontline personnel such as traffic enforcers and barangay officials were chosen for the first day of mass testing.