DOH begins study on lifting Covid-19 restrictions

MANILA – A Department of Health (DOH) official on Friday said the process of lifting restrictions—such as the mandatory wearing of face masks and physical distancing—is ongoing.

In an online press briefing, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said health experts, together with the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID), are looking at the possibility of lifting restrictions in specific bubbles.

“Ito ho ngayon ang ginagawa natin, tayo po ay nag-aaral na nitong sinasabi na rekomendasyon na ito para makita na natin if we can apply this in specific bubbles (This is what we’re doing now, we are studying this recommendation so we can see if we can apply this in specific bubbles),” Vergeire said.

She said the study would look beyond the number of vaccinated people and would consider the current state of Covid-19 infections in the country.

However, she said it is too early to say when the easing of restrictions would happen.

“Kailangan natin tignan ano na po ba ang estado ng ating mga kaso dito sa NCR (National Capital Region) or healthcare utilization rate kung nakakaluwag-luwag na tayo. Kailangan din ho natin tignan ‘yung compliance ng tao sa minimum health protocols (We need to look at the state of cases here in NCR or whether we have room based on our healthcare utilization rate. We also need to look at the public’s compliance with minimum health protocols),” Vergeire said.

Despite the one million individuals who have received their full doses of a Covid-19 vaccine in the country, she noted that the number is still relatively small compared to the total population of the country—around 109 million based on 2019 data.

“They say we can achieve this through herd immunity pero alam naman natin na matagal pa ho natin ‘yan makakamit (but we know it would take a long time before we achieve this),” Vergeire said.

She said the lifting of restrictions currently being rolled out across the United States is not yet possible in the country.

“Hindi pa rin ho natin ‘yan makonsidera dahil ‘yung rate ng vaccination natin hindi naman po pareho dun sa Estados Unidos. Marami na Silang nabakunahan na kababayan nila (We cannot consider that yet because our rate of vaccination is not similar with the United States. They have vaccinated many of their people),” Vergeire said.

She noted that some places in the country still experience increases in Covid-19 infections.

“So, pag-aaralan po lahat ‘yan kasama ng ibang factors (So, we will study this along with other factors), not just vaccination, then we will inform the public,” Vergeire said.