Prevent the spread of Covid-19

AS the number of Covid cases and hospitalizations increase, the national government has moved from a one-size-fits-all approach to putting more responsibilities on the local government units (LGUS). This has advantages and disadvantages.

As test results are forwarded to the local health offices, this allows the LGU to quickly pinpoint potential and actual hotspots for action, such as enhanced quarantine and provision of supplies. Some LGUS have done an excellent job of quick response and sensible management during the past year.

The most serious failing has come in contact tracing, which is critical to mitigating the virus spread. The Department of the Interior and Local Government reported that only four out of 13 Metro Manila cities have met the World Health Organization standards. This is a ratio of one contact tracer per 800 people.

In the past few days, cities are beginning to impose tight restrictions on businesses and to reduce citizen mobility. However, it is an uneven mix. The DILG is urging Metro Manila mayors to impose uniform curfew hours. We can fully understand why.

If you travel south on the South Luzon Expressway, you may want to get off at the Sucat exit. Turning left immediately puts you in the City of Muntinlupa. Turn right and you are under the jurisdiction of the City of Parañaque.

Here is the confusion and problem. Muntinlupa is imposing a 12:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. curfew while the curfew in Parañaque is 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.

Further, in one city, sari-sari stores have an operating time of 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., while all other businesses including convenience stores can open from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. That seems discriminatory to lower economic groups. However, the implementation and monitoring that people observe proper health protocols is greater at a mall than at a palengke.

The bigger question, though, that is not being answered is, where are people catching the virus?

There has been constant concern over the past year that public transportation is a major culprit. However, a new study found no correlation between New York City’s autumn Covid-19 spike and subway ridership. “When cases began to climb again in the fall of 2020, data from New York’s contact tracing program reported that 70 percent of new Covid-19 cases occurred from households and small gatherings, whereas less than 0.96 percent came from public or private transit.”

But the transmission data is extremely confusing. KABC-TV Los Angeles: “In Los Angeles County amid an increase in coronavirus cases, Eyewitness News has found restaurants have been linked to less than 4 percent of coronavirus outbreaks in non-residential settings.”

Except the New York Times reported that, 12 percent of new coronavirus cases in the US state of Maryland were traced to restaurants.

You might logically think that one of the most dangerous places to be is on a crowded airplane for hours. A study made by the University of Alabama focused on one airline—emirates—because that company had a rigid mask policy with everyone on board required to mask-up virtually at all times.

They looked at all Emirates flights from Dubai to Hong Kong and Emirates had five flights with seven or more infected passengers on each flight flying on eight-hour trips. And yet, nobody else on the planes—none of the other 1,500 to 2,000 passengers—picked up the virus. “Those were flights with higher risk, and yet there was no transmission.”

The conclusion is obvious. Wear your mask. Wear your shield. Live with the inconvenience.