SMC helps LGUs boost testing capacity

San Miguel Corporation has put up more testing booths in areas with high-density of COVID-19 cases by teaming up with 17 local government units in Metro Manila as well as donate test kits to allow the poorest communities access to free testing.

SMC president and COO Ramon S. Ang said the booths would be scattered strategically around areas in most dire need “so our local officials can easily ask people to get tested.”

He said this will complement the national government’s expanded testing efforts, which is focused on building “mega swabbing centers” in key, major commercial areas to test, initially, returning overseas Filipino workers.

“This is the best way we can help our local governments ramp up or expand their testing capacity--in particular, for poorer barangays and communities, even as national government takes care of building our mega swabbing centers, which for now will be focused on our returning OFWs,” said Ang.

He added that, “Our aim is to help flatten the curve in our less fortunate barangays, especially in areas where there have been outbreaks. Our less-fortunate countrymen are really vulnerable, because their living conditions make it harder to observe social distancing and other preventive measures. So we want to focus our efforts on helping them.”

While local governments have initiated testing efforts and also have their own budgets to do so, Ang said SMC’s donation would help expand testing capacity, particularly as the government considers the lifting of the enhanced community quarantine in some parts of Luzon.

At the same time, Ang said SMC is moving ahead with plans to put up its own testing laboratory to test its 70,000 employees and extended workforce to help government in its efforts to test aggressively and gradually reopen the economy.

“Apart from donating more test kits, we are increasing donation of highcapacity testing machines to help significantly increase the number of tests that can be processed daily to contain the spread of the virus,”Ang said.

He added that, “Testing booths are just one component of the entire infrastructure for an efficient widespread testing. We need to produce more test kits, and make testing affordable, if not free, to the hardest-hit communities. We also need enough equipment to be able to process all these tests. We have to mobilize all these components to be able to test at scale.”