Phl tightens borders against Omicron
The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases said that all international passengers who have completed their Covid-19 shots should undergo facility-based quarantine with swab tests taken on the fifth day regardless of their country of origin.
The Philippines has imposed stricter testing and quarantine requirements for inbound travelers as part of its precautionary measures against the newly-discovered Covid-19 Omicron variant.
Through its latest resolution, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) said that all international passengers who have completed their Covid-19 shots should undergo facility-based quarantine with swab tests taken on the fifth day regardless of their country of origin.
In the case of individuals who are unvaccinated, partially vaccinated, or whose vaccination status cannot be independently validated, they should undergo facility-based quarantine with RT-PCR tests done on the seventh day from the dates of their arrival.
Meanwhile, all travelers — regardless of their Covid-19 test results and vaccination status — are required to undergo home quarantine up to the 14th day from the dates of their arrival, according to the IATF.
“The testing and quarantine protocols of minors, on the other hand, shall follow the testing and quarantine protocol of the parent or guardian traveling with them, regardless of the minor’s vaccination status and country of origin,” the task force said.
Travelers are also required to take negative swab tests conducted within 72 hours prior to their departure from their origin, the IATF said.
The task force also directed the Department of Transportation to ensure that airlines board only passengers who comply with the negative test-before-travel requirement.
At present, only international travelers from nations included in the Philippines’ “yellow” and “green” lists are allowed to enter the country.
The “green” list is composed of countries, territories, and jurisdictions considered as “low risk” for Covid-19 infection, while the “yellow” list is composed of destinations deemed as “moderate risk” for coronavirus.
On the other hand, foreign travelers from the “red” list or countries considered as “high risk” for Covid-19 are barred from entering the Philippines.
Exempted from such rules are Filipinos traveling either via government-initiated or non-government repatriations, as well as Bayanihan Flights.
They should only be allowed to deplane via the Ninoy Aquino International Airport or Clark International Airport, according to the IATF’s latest resolution.
International passengers who have already arrived and are currently undergoing quarantine should continue with the testing and quarantine protocols in place at the time of their arrival, the task force added.
The updated set of protocols took effect on Friday, which came following the discovery of the Omicron variant that was said to be the virus type with the most number of mutations.
Previously, the Philippines allowed fully-vaccinated travelers from the “green” areas to skip facility-based quarantine upon their arrival in the Philippines provided that they present negative Covid-19 test results taken within 72 hours prior to departure from their host countries.
Experts have expressed fears that Omicron could be more infectious than Delta and could possibly be resistant to the vaccines that have now been rolled out worldwide.
Nations around the world imposed travel bans on countries where Omicron was detected as information on the novel strain remains scarce.
Philippine authorities have so far detected 2.83 million Covid-19 infections nationwide, of which 1.72 percent or 48,700 have been fatal.