Malacañang on Tuesday said a month-long quarantine period will enable local government units (LGUs) to foresee events and place strategic objectives in curbing the spread of COVID-19 in their communities, unlike with a shorter 14-day lockdown.
Palace spokesman Harry Roque said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) recommended the quarantine for the whole of September, which President Rodrigo Duterte approved on Monday.
"It's hard to change the rules every two weeks, so now that it's monthly, it will make it stable and even more localized for LGUs, which are already implementing localized and granular lockdowns. This just ensures continuity,” Roque said.
This developed as the country’s COVID-19 cases surged to 224,264 on Tuesday after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 3,483 new cases, marking the seventh straight day in which more than 3,000 new coronavirus cases were reported.
Thirty-nine new fatalities were reported, bringing the death toll from COVID-19 to 3,597.
At the same time, the DOH reported 464 new recoveries, bringing to 158,012 the number of patients who have recovered from the disease.
The new cases brings the total active cases to 62,655. Of these, 91.3 percent are mild cases, 6.3 are asymptomatic, 1 percent are severe and 1.4 percent are in critical condition.
The Philippines has tested a total of 2,459,653 individuals as of Aug. 31, the DOH said.
Meanwhile, as the “ber” months usher in the Christmas season, Roque said the IATF has also allowed 10 percent capacity in mass gatherings for religious purposes.
Previous IATF guidelines only allowed 10 persons to attend religious gatherings in areas under GCQ, but Roque reminded the public to observe strict social distancing and use face masks when they go to worship.
“It’s important to follow minimum public health standards, such as social distancing and use of face mask, among others,” Roque said.
The top regions with cases in the recent two weeks were Metro Manila with 1,689 or 53 percent, Region 4A with 639 or 20 percent and Region 3 with 213 or 7 percent.
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier placed Iligan City under modified enhanced community quarantine.
Metro Manila, Bulacan, Batangas, Tacloban, and Bacolod will be under general community quarantine until the end of the month.
The Philippines has been logging more than 2,000 additional COVID-19 cases daily since late July, following the easing of quarantine measures and the gradual opening up of the economy.
The highest was 6,880 reported on Aug. 10.
The DOH has attributed the continued increase in cases to community transmission.
In a radio interview, an expert on traditional Chinese medicine said patients need to consult a doctor before taking traditional herbal capsules for the treatment of COVID-19.
Dr. Philip Nino Tan-Gatue, of the Philippine General Hospital, a person can only use Lianhua Qingwen herbal capsules if their COVID-19 symptoms match the traditional indications that the drug treats, including asthma-like cough, fever and muscle pains.
“Do not get it from illegal sources… Get it with a prescription,” Gatue said.
Lianhua Qingwen contains Ma Huang, a weed from which ephedrine is extracted. Ephedrine is a bronchodilator that opens up airways in the lungs and could be risky for those with high blood pressure or taking certain psychiatric drugs.
The Dangerous Drug Board classifies ephedrine as a regulated substance because it can be used to make illegal drugs.
Also on Tuesday, thye Quezon City government said its contact tracing platform reveals an increasing number of youths at risk of COVID-19 infection in households.
The City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit, headed by Dr. Rolly Cruz, said the high incidence of infection was due to their close contact with positive adults in households as indicated by data from its artificial intelligence (AI)-based platform.
