Duterte eases NCR lockdown

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has placed Metro Manila and four nearby provinces, collectively known as NCR Plus, in a less restrictive modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) until April 30.

The National Capital Region (NCR), along with the provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna and Cavite had been in enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) since March 29 amid the continued rise in Covid-19 cases.

Malacañang said last week the country cannot sustain a strict lockdown because the government has no more funds to provide cash assistance to low-income families.

Palace Spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said the city of Santiago in Quirino and Abra will also be in MECQ from April 12 until April 30.

Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Batangas, Tacloban City, Iligan City, Davao City, Lanao del Sur and Quezon will be in general community quarantine (GCQ) while the rest of the country will be in the most lenient modified general community quarantine (MGCQ).

Mayors in Metro Manila agreed to

shorten curfew hours. Beginning April 12, the curfew hours will be from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.

The easing of the lockdown in NCR Plus comes even as Octa Research reported that the deaths from Covid-19 have gone up.

In a special report published on Sunday, Octa Research said the case fatality rate (CFR) in NCR was 2.02 percent, compared to 1.8 percent in October 2020.

“This means a higher percentage of people are dying due to Covid-19,” Octa said.

There are 100,250 active cases in Metro Manila, and, based on the CFR of about two percent, 2,091 of them will die,1,020 of whom are 64 years and younger.

The CFR of different age groups varies, Octa noted.

As of April 10, NCR’s Covid mortality rate was 2.02 percent on average. In the 65 and above bracket it was 12.82 percent; 34 percent for those aged 60-64; 3.54 percent for ages 55 to 59, and 0.66 percent for ages 18 to 55.

The reproduction number for Metro Manila dropped to 1.24 from April 4 to 10, one week after ECQ was reimposed.

The average number of new coronavirus cases in NCR is 4,676 which is 15 percent lower than that of the previous week.

The reproduction number indicates how infectious a disease is, and the current number still means that each infected individual transmits the virus to more than one person.

Metro Manila had a basic reproduction number of around 2 on March 14 to 20 period, according to Octa.

It said “it is premature to say that new cases in the NCR are now trending downward.”

On Sunday, the Department of Health (DoH) reported 11,681 new Covid-19 cases.

The country had an all-time high recovery on Sunday with 55,204 new survivors, bringing the total to 703,404.

The last highest recovery count was on April 4 with 41,205 cured patients.

SMS

The President and the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATFEID) approved the recommendation of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) to use the smart messaging system (SMS) to improve the use of the government’s StaySafe.PH System.

The government also adopted the recommendation to transfer to the health department the running of the Covid-19 Document Repository System (CDRS) and its immediate integration with StaySafe and other local contact tracing systems and applications.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has been directed to lead the implementation of the CDRS, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) will take charge of national interoperability, and the DoH will ensure integration of the StaySafe.PH System with the CDRS, Roque said.

The DILG was directed to draw up with DICT and DoH an action plan for contact tracing, complete with specific timelines and targets.

The task force also approved the proposal of the Department of Tourism (DoT) to build free and temporary walk-in and drive-thru vaccination centers in the Nayong Pilipino property in Parañaque City, according to Roque.

Covid-19 beds in the NCR Plus will be increased through the joint effort of the Department of Education, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, the Department of Public Works and Highways and the DoH.

Hospitals will free up Covid beds by transferring less serious patients to temporary treatment and monitoring facilities, and step-down facilities for mild and moderate care or home care, Roque said.

Local government units (LGUs) in NCR Plus must set up their own telehealth triaging systems.

Roque said Duterte directed the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. to ensure that reimbursement claims are paid on time to encourage hospitals to accept Covid-19 patients.

He added that private hospitals in NCR Plus have committed to increase their Covid beds.

He said a total of 3,156 hospital beds were added in the NCR Plus during the two-week ECQ period.

Roque said Duterte directed LGUs to prioritize the generation of demand for vaccination to those with highest risk for severe disease and death, particularly senior citizens and persons with comorbidities.