Expanded targeted testing includes teachers - Malacañang

Malacañang said on Tuesday that teachers are included in the national government’s plan to conduct expanded targeted testing to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) in the country.

Photo credit: headtopics.com

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a virtual Palace briefing in Davao City that since teachers are also considered front-liners, they may avail of free Covid-19 testing.

Alam niyo po ang mga guro natin, considered na rin silang front-liners, kasama na rin po sila doon sa expanded targeted testing natin

[Our teachers are already considered front-liners, so they are also included in our expanded targeted testing.]

Last May, Secretary Roque pointed out that the use of the term "mass testing" causes confusion among many, with people thinking that everyone should be tested, which is not the case. Also, he emphasized that the government does not have the capacity to perform mass testing.

Harry Roque announced that the “expanded targeted testing” is the official term to be used to refer to the government-sanctioned protocol to detect cases of novel coronavirus in the country. The expanded target testing per DOH is based on international practice guidelines. Only individuals who need to be tested will undergo testing.

On the other hand, Department of Health (DOH) said that Philippines has the highest Covid-19 testing capacity in Southeast Asia, however, Philippines has also the most Covid-19 cases.

As of August 4, 2020, according to DOH data, the country has a total of 99 licensed testing laboratories and conducted a total of 1,643,539 tests, testing an average of 28,938 tests per day within the last 7 days. This is significantly higher than Indonesia which has tested a total of around 908,000 as of August 4, and testing an average of 14,291 per day within the last 7 days according to Our World in Data. 

Roque also assured that the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) will provide assistance to those who get infected with Covid-19.