Lift 14-day quarantine for vaccinated visitors — Sotto
Why do fully vaccinated people have to still do the two-week quarantine when traveling to the Philippines?
Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Thursday called on the country's pandemic task force to lift the mandatory 14-day quarantine requirement for fully-vaccinated individuals arriving in the country.
Sotto appealed to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) and Department of Health (DoH) to remove the existing protocol saying it goes against the Philippines' move to slowly reopen the economy.
"Calling on IATF/DoH to remove the 14-day quarantine on fully-vaccinated persons entering the Philippines as long as health standards are followed,'' the Senate leader said in a message to reporters.
"Why do fully vaccinated people have to still do the two-week quarantine when traveling to the Philippines? it doesn’t make sense! Defeats the purpose of vaccinating so we can open the economy," he added.
The lawmaker likewise pointed out the weeks-long quarantine is causing travelers to have second thoughts in coming to the country.
"Vaccinated investors won’t come because they have to quarantine or even Filipinos who are vaccinated are having second thoughts," he added.
While it provides protection, the DoH earlier said there is still not enough studies showing that vaccines prevent individuals from contracting the virus and infecting other people.
The jabs, however, can reduce risk of severe illness and death from Covid-19.
As of 3 June, the Philippines has vaccinated 5,180,721 Filipinos — still a far cry from the government's target of 58 million to achieve herd immunity.